Wrong Place, Right Time
by rancorlover
Summary: Adventure is around every corner. Some only need to go out their door to experience it. Others need to find it on the other side of the world. But, for some campers, going on an adventure to the woods, turns into an adventure of a lifetime. In another Galaxy... Far, Far Away... Co-Authored by FledgelingHawk2012
1. Chapter 1

Wrong Place, Right Time

" _...Do you come from a land down under? Where women glow and men plunder?... Can't you hear, can't you hear the thunder?..."_

Was the sound that woke me up from my restless slumber, everything at this moment was a haze… _wait what am I?_

 _I am human, College student._ _Ok? So far so good, let's try that again.I am a young man, named Aaron Shepherd and attending college at Indiana University. Good enough._ Second, what was I doing? _Going camping with your older sister and friends for your spring break, Dummy._ _Oh, that's righ- HEY._

But I was cut short from my internal monologue by the texture of granules in my mouth.

 _That's funny, it's almost as if it's hard to… can't' breathe... CAN'T BREATHE!_

I gasped for air and made a "blech" sound as sand came out of my mouth. I scraped my tongue and coughed a few times.

 _Air...finally._

I found that I was prone in the sand with my body slightly scuffed up from something, and what I saw shocked me. It was not the beautiful, Disney worthy forest our campsite was in, but in a vast desert. The Sahara, maybe? I didn't have time to think about as I heard similar noises that I made right next to me. At least I wasn't alone. I looked that direction and saw my sister with the same damage.

First thing she said, "Turn that song OFF!"

 _Oh, right, the song_. I saw the source was coming from my jacket as I turned over. As soon as I activated my phone, it said bedtime alarm on the screen. _What?!_ I looked at my phone's time, and it said 11:00PM. When it looked like high noon around us. _That's not a good sign_. I looked again and found we had no signal. _Also not good_. I need to tell my sister this discovery, but as I turned to tell her, I saw that she already knew as she checked her own phone.

 _At least we're on the same page: we needed to get out of here._ I had to stand, and my stomach was killing me. It was the first really good look of the area, my first assumption of the area was correct. And my sister followed suit as she noticed the same thing. We needed to get out, fast. _Think Aaron, what did_ _ **Man V.S. Wild**_ _teach me?_

But all I could think of was "how to drink your own pee…"

 _Ok not just that just that, just get the obvious stuff out of the way._

"Sis, check our supply and see what we got." I said tossing my backpack to her. I had to start making my outfit better for this environment. _One of the worst things in a desert like this is the sand and the sun. We need our skin in the best condition. Even if we are only a few miles from civilization, we need to prepare for the worst case scenario._

After a couple of minutes, I was finished with my clothes. I looked like Lawrence of Arabia (cue epic music).

 _That should be good for the road, well desert, ahead of us. Jo will be next, let's see where she is at with our stuff._

"Sis, what-"

I turn to see that she is staring at the guns. One was a WW2 colt 1911, and the other was stronger- a 12 Gauge Double Barrel sawed off-shotgun- and she wasn't supposed to know about it. I could tell she was mad.

"Look, I can explain.", I said in a calm voice.

"I can't believe," _OH NO_! "that you would have a Sawed OFF-Double Barreled shotgun," _Here it comes,_ "WITHOUT LETTING ME TRY IT OUT!" _I knew it… wait, what?_

I turned once more to see that she was looking at it with glee.

"This is SO COOL, why didn't you want me to know about this?"

"Well, it's not mine, it belongs to Eugene. We traded guns we both bought the other day, just to try them out. We both agreed to trade back this trip, I didn't tell you about the double barrel because I thought you would think it would be overpowered for a camping trip to the forest."

She shook her head with a smile and said, "Not if you are just trading them, or testing them out on non living targets. At the most self defence. Like a wild predator."

I've always loved my sister for her understanding.

"Wait, if this was Eugene's," Jo said holding the shotgun. "what was your's?"

"Mine? Oh a UMP. 45, No biggy."

" A submachine gun, NO BIG DEAL?!"

"Not compared to an AA12 Auto Shotgun Tomas was bringing." I had a full face grin waiting for the shrek. "...WHAAAT!" I couldn't contain my laughter at this and rolled in the sand. And that is what brought me back to reality, sand, desert, and stranded.

"We don't have time for this, what to we have on us." I asked hastily standing up.

Shock was still on her face as she remembered their plight. "Right, well, we have about couple weeks worth of food, 7/8th preserved 1/8th fresh, and 2 weeks of water. But considering this is a desert, it is about a weeks worth." Well, at least that's something. "What do we have equipment wise, do we still have our tents?"

"Yes, we have them, we have everything we had with us for our trip. Even our entertainment, and our computers for our homework."

 _Heaven forbid we lose our homework_.

"Alright then Jo, let's get you set up. I don't know how far away civilization is, but we need to be READY. Lord willing, we'll make it."

It took about a minute or two to get her sun proofed.

Her outfit wasn't much different from mine. Survival.

"Alright, now to decide what direction to go." I stated as I put my backpack on me.

Jo looked worried for about a moment.

"Do you think we will find our friends here? What if there somewhere worse, or dead?"

"Don't worry about it, I'm sure their fine. Let's just worry about our situation for now."

Jo gave me a nod.

Now time to navigate.

"Alright, now from what I remember," I said raising my head to the sky, "the sun always sets in the we-."

I couldn't believe it.

My lower jaw went as low as it could go.

"What?" Jo said looking to see what I saw. She was in just as a shock as I was. Their were two suns…

WHAT'S GOING ON?!

END CH 1.


	2. Chapter 2

Wrong Place, Right Time

Chapter II

Jo:

Duel suns. _What the heck?!_

In that moment, it hit me that we were not on earth and why it was so hot in the D.

"Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," I said.

"No, I don't think we are."

Aaron sighed and sat in the sand.

I followed suit. No point in continuing on if the leader wasn't leading.

Aaron's expression was blank, and I wasn't sure what to say.

"Aaron?"

He kind of whined like Frank Burns does on M*A*S*H.

"Aaron?"

After a couple more minutes, he stood up, wiped the sand from the butt of his tunic and started walking again.

"If we're not gonna get home, we still need to survive. Surely, there isn't just sand. Some kind of civilization must exist."

"Aaron, it's the Shepherd luck to end up on just such a dust bowl planet."

"Maybe so, but we have to try."

I only nodded and followed him across the dunes, making sure to leave a few paces between us.

While we were trying to conserve our water intake in the heat, it was very difficult to resist the temptation. Sweat was pouring off of us and the suns were relentless. With no concept of how long a day was, we were lost. I checked my phone as often as I dared, wanting to conserve battery.

The phone said it was 8 A.M. on Earth. 8 A.M.

Here, the suns didn't even look like they wanted to set. They had hardly moved.

"Aaron, we've been at this for like nine hours. In this heat, we need a break."

"If we stop now, we may not find civilization."

"No, we'll be dead from dehydration."

He seemed to consider that, and then he consented. We set up the tent and anchored it as best as we could. As soon as we hit the shade, both of our moods improved.

I handed Aaron an apple, a carrot, and a potato.

He looked at me funny.

"We need our strength, and I figured we should save our fun foods for when we find civilization. We will have to cook the chicken breasts when we stop for the night. The insulation won't keep it cool long enough. The ice pack is already warm."

"Okay, okay."

 _Glad that wasn't a fight._

"Good."

Grudgingly, Aaron bit into the raw potato.

"Hey, you know when you're hungry, it isn't that bad."

I bit into mine and agreed.

We decided to rest for two hours to try and track the movement of the suns.

They did move, ever so slowly. The shadows were longer when we decided to pack up and keep going.

We hadn't quite figured out the whole "bathroom in nature" system yet, but Aaron had it easier. It was so weird. Thankfully, we didn't need to go often because of the sweat.

I was bored, too, and I did try to read a book and follow Aaron, but it was too easy to fall behind. So, to pass the time, we talked a little bit, and I hummed to myself.

"You know you're wasting energy by humming the Spongebob Squarepants theme for the hundredth time?" he finally snapped.

"What would you prefer me to sing? _It's Cold in the D_ but change the words to _It's hot in the D_ to remind us how hot it is?"

Aaron briefly considered the alternative.

"Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?" he started us off.

It was finally dusk when my screaming feet and ankles could go no farther. It was 2 P.M. on Earth.

Aaron must have been feeling the same, because he sat down. I followed his lead, and my knees joined the pain party, followed by my back, shoulders, and neck.

"How far do you think we went today?"

"No idea, Jo. Too bad we don't have pedometers or something."

"Or FitBits. I know it was more than 10,000 steps."

"At least twice that. Anyway, it's probably best we stop. I know we aren't on Earth time, but it's a fool's mission to try and do this in the dark. Plus, we haven't seen any sign of a moon yet."

"And no wood. We need to cook that chicken tonight. We need the protein."

Aaron yawned.

"We'll think of something. Let's just rest."

My body was exhausted, but my brain was still wired and ready for duty.

The light faded and we were able to see millions of stars and three moons.

Three.

One was larger than Earth's moon and the other two were smaller, but they were all beautiful (I've always been more of a moon child).

I was so engrossed in the moons, I was not looking around, and Aaron hit my leg.

"Ow. What do you want."

"Jo, look out there. What do you see?"

My glasses were filthy and needed cleaned, but I could make out a nice healthy looking glow on the horizon.

"You mean that orange glow?"

"Yeah. I think it's fire."

"You think it could be some sort of village?"

"I don't know, but I propose we try to find out," Aaron said while he forced himself on his feet.

"Now?"

He sat back down.

"No. Tomorrow night. We'll keep an eye on that area 'til then. We're both exhausted. If it's a volcano or something, we wouldn't be able to run."

I was relieved.

We set up the tent, and Aaron managed to get a small fire going with a bag of Dortitos. I used a skewer to hold each individual chicken breast over the small flames. I let Aaron have the first one, which he ate rather quickly considering how hot it was, but I ended up doing the same.

Our bellies satisfied, we went inside the tent.

Aaron took off his boots and faced the toes toward the "village" fire.

We both laid on top of our sleeping bags, dreading how sore we knew we would feel in the morning.

We both slept through most of the next day. I didn't hear my alarm, nor did I hear Aaron's. I think we were both dead to the world

As I awoke, I noticed the pains. My legs were stiff, my feet were sore, and my ankles cracked with every small movement. It was dim inside the tent, but I could tell it was daylight outside. Aaron began to stir, so I went ahead and decided to jump on the chance to try and "go" behind the tent before he came to.

Once I came back inside, Aaron was sitting up.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey."

"We should probably take inventory and start packing up."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because we slept so long...and we need to get a better idea of what is what and what we have. I know we just did it before walking yesterday, but we also had to drink a lot of water to balance out how much we were sweating. I'm sure my initial estimates are all wrong."

"Okay, okay," he grumbled.

We already drank more than a third of the water. No way we would be able to last a week out here. We had food, though, and we still agreed to eat the veggies first.

By this time, it was again dusk, and we just make out the faint flickering of the fire.

"Ready?" Aaron asked.

"No. But, here we go."

And go we did, Aaron leading the way over the sand, with only the light of the moons to guide our steps.

We walked for a couple of hours- for certain. It was definitely further away than we had hoped.

My stamina was much diminished from the previous day, and I was running on fumes. Aaron seemed to be doing much better than I was, though he had a very physical job as a welder, and I worked at a desk job, sitting for most of the day.

As we got closer, we could see it was not a village, but a camp, and that the voices coming from the camp were not human.

We started walking slower, quieter, and more alert.

Once we got close enough, we could see that the beings were wearing similar tunics as us, but they had on masks and were wielding clubs.

Then, in the light of the fire, we could see humans, huddled, tied up, and obviously afraid.

"We need to help them," Aaron said.

I swallowed, deciding to allow Aaron to lead in this effort.

END CHAPTER 2


	3. Chapter 3

WPRT. Ch 3 _Liberation, Wild West_

Aaron:

We both ducked down before they could see us. We needed a battle plan.

My sister started first with her thoughts.

"I don't understand, I thought if we're on another planet, maybe even a different galaxy, there would be no humans?"

That was a was a question for another time.

"Let's focus on the task at hand." Jo comprehended what I said while I brainstormed.

I needed another look.

I told Jo with my hand to lay low.

From what I saw it was a simple camp setting, but on a bigger scale. There were guards at every corner of the camp and two patrols. Electronic equipment in the center of the camp almost looked like cooking equipment, due to the animal corpses near them. The prisoners were being pushed into tents. The more I saw of the camp, I realized there were no women or children with the masked men, only a few human children with their parents. This is a war camp. Not just some bandits, or "Raiders".

Then I saw something coming in the distance. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It is what I could only describe as a floating ship coming in at high speed towards the camp. It was dark brown about eighteen feet long and eight feet wide with railings around the top and fins in the back, obviously to steer it. The most intimidating part about this craft was the big gun in the front. This seemed like something out of a sci-fi apocalyptic movie or _Star Trek_.

I held off my opinions as the craft moved in to the camp and came to a halt. I saw that their cargo was more people, and as they were moving more people into the big tent, someone ran out of it. A kid that looked about sixteen running to get out of the camp, most likely to get help. I heard yelling inside the tent telling, mostly "NO" and "Come BACK " But, before he could even make it to the edge of the camp. One of the robed things grabbed him and pulled him to the ground. The "thing" screeched loud and brought his club down on the kid's face. You would think he would stop, but he didn't. He just kept pounding the kid's face in. The last time the humanoid hit him, I heard a sickening crack, and a loud crying sound inside the tent saying "No". That monster just killed a kid without a care in the world. They can't get away with this. But what can we do. It's just me and my sister vs who knows how many.

 _Come on, you're a Shep, you can do this thi-._

Suddenly my thought pattern changed.

 _I can't believe it. Those idiots._

They left the craft unguarded, and lessened the patrols around the camp. Leaving the tent entrance with the prisoners with two guards. Most of the garbed creatures entered a tent on the other side of the camp.

 _It's too good of a setup, nobody is that stupid, right?_

Well, I had a plan now.

Lord willing, we could pull this off.

I moved back down to where Jo was.

"Well, how bad is it?"

"They just brutally murdered a kid with a club, I think it's safe to say they are bad."

Jo had covered her mouth when I told her about the kid. She looked to be even holding back a tear.

"What, but… how can they DO THAT!"

"Because it's easy, look, I don't like it as much as anyone else would. But now is not the time for why, just action. And I know how."

I motioned for her to follow me low to the top of the hill. Then she saw the body of the kid being dragged away, and started crying. I covered her mouth and pulled her back down.

"Hey hey, calm down, it's alright…. He's in a better place, shush…. It's alright."

It took about a couple of minutes to calm her down, but she was still upset.

"Alright, I will just tell you the plan from here. It has two parts, one person is going to sneak in the tent and liberate it of prisoners. While the other one will take over that craft and its gun to cause chaos. Most likely that will be me, seeing how you are now. I think I will be on the gun."

Jo looked at the ground as I was saying it, but looked up with a calmer attitude and nodded confirming she understood what she needed to do.

"Good. Now, when we sneak in the camp. We will need to bring our stuff with us, and be armed." I started to dig around looking for the guns. "I don't think their armor is bullet proof, due to them not having that much metal, except for their heads."

I took out the double barrel and handed her the ammo for it.

"Ok, you know how guns work, I showed you at the range. With this, just aim at the lower chest to hit the target."

"Right."

"Take what ammo you can take out fast for reloads. Keep the rest in the bag. We don't want you to lose them."

I took one last look at her.

"Well, wish me luck. Lord willing, I will see you soon."

Then I went to go do my part. I took about three minutes to get over on the other side. The hardest part was avoiding the patrol of about four armed guards. They weren't spread out like they should have been. I just had to keep low to get to the "boat." As I got closer. I observed the creatures more.

The masks they wore could only be described as bug like. That creeped me out. I finally made it to the boat. And I climb on board and had to duck in fast, due to the slow patrol coming by. I waited about another minute before rising. As I did, I saw,what the boat had in it, nothing but a small chest in the back, a podium, that I assume is where the steering is, and a big gun in the front.

The gun itself was interesting. It had a long barrel like a machine gun, but I couldn't see any ammo port on it. But I assumed it was primed and ready to go.

 _I wonder how it fires? Only one way to find out._

I holstered my colt and put my hands on the handles of the turret. It felt fine to hold. I turned it right and left a little to see how fast it turned.

It seems to be in order.

 _Now to see if it has a safety or something. This knob looks important._

*zzzzZZZZZ*

" _Ok, LET'S DO THIS!"_

*PEEEEEW!* …...*PEEEEEW!*

It fired like a weapon from _The War of The Worlds_ , with a steady stream of light. That first shot took out one of the guards to the prisoners tent.

The first shot caught me how it fired from there, and its capabilities seemed like a high powered hose. The Second shot I fired was more effective as the patrol came over towards the boat to see what what happened. All four were mowed down.

Then, the last tent guard started yelling something and started running from his post. It didn't matter if he held his ground or not, as I shot him right there. However, things started to escalate as the creatures started pouring out of the big tent on the other side, each with a weapon in hand. All of them were finding cover from my line of fire. So I started taking them out as fast as I could. This went on for about a couple of minute, which seemed longer. Then I heard a gunshot in the prisoners tent.

 _I guess she is is freeing them now_.

Then not a minute later, a group about 20 people ran out of the tent charging at close by creatures arming themselves with the weapons they carried. It started to become easier taking them out as they tried to move to different cover. But we could still be overwhelmed as we were still outnumbered.

"COME ON, we NEED to get out of here!"

I saw my sister among them. Leading them over to the boat. She now had two weapons on her, the one I had given her and one of the rifles the things had.

As the first person climbed aboard I asked a serious question. If he answered no, we were in trouble.

"Can you drive this thing?"


	4. Chapter 4

_(A/N: Hope everyone has a wonderful Independence/Treason day!)_

WPRT CH. 4

 _Like Hillbillies in Los Angeles_

Jo:

I certainly hoped this guy could fly this thing.

Thankfully, he could.

I was able to exhale as we pulled away into the night.

"You two aren't from around here, are you?" the guy asked us.

"No, we're not. But we are glad to help," Aaron answered.

"My name is Owen Lars," he said.

"Nevermind that right now," I said, "just drive."

The fire shrank in the background until it was gone entirely from sight.

As the dark engulfed us, I almost cried again, thinking about that kid.

"What was his name?" I asked Owen.

"Who?"

"The kid who was killed. What was his name?"

"Airk."

I've never forgotten Airk.

Owen drove us to a little pit.

It was a home.

"This is my farm," Owen said to Aaron.

"Farm?" Aaron asked, looking around for some kind of crops. There weren't any. Only sand. "But there's no crops."

"Ah. We are moisture farmers. All of us. There are machines out there that collect what little water there is in the atmosphere and condenses it for us. We use that for drinking, bathing, cooking, the livestock, and selling it when we have to. I don't, but some of these farmers have deals with cantinas and restaurants in the ports. I sell waters to traders and Jawas that come by. My father made those rules. When he passes away, I suppose I'll probably expand my market."

"Okay. Makes sense," I answered.

"You guys will either have to stay here for the night or head out. I suggest you stay here. My dad lives here, and my girlfriend, Beru, comes very early in the morning and leaves late. My stepmother died a couple days ago, but she'd been missing for a little while. My step-brother, Anakin, went and rescued her from those monsters you saw tonight. She died just after he held her...for the first time in ten years, and she lived to see him again. Anyway, Beru comes to help us men out with the cooking and the laundry."

"We'll stay here for the night since you're offering," Aaron said.

I followed them inside. Some of the other farmers took off for their homes, but some also agreed to stay.

Aaron and I were given the spare room (I was a lady and I was too scared to stay alone), so the others slept in their parlor on the floor.

Before I took off my _Lawrence of Arabia_ "cosplay," I turned on my laptop, praying for some sort of wifi signal. I wanted to tell Mom and Dad that we were okay. But there was nothing in the corner. It came on, though.

Disappointed, I turned it back off and took out a blank, lined notebook and a pen. (Always be prepared when you're a writer). It was in my nature to act as an historian anyway.

I dated the page with the the Earth date from my phone and began:

 _Four of us left three days ago for a camping trip in Turkey Run. Aaron, Eugene, Thomas, and I drove the three hours to get there. We were doing normal camp-out things. We all got tired and went to bed._

 _Aaron and I woke up to his usual "one hour 'til bedtime" alarm, and we were in the desert…._

I wrote down everything I knew and some speculations.

I hoped we would find our friends.

I took off the robes took a shower (Owen said we could) and then put on my sleep shorts and a black camisole. This was the first time I had taken my bra off in two days, and it felt great, even if it was just for some shut-eye. I laid down on the bed and stretched out. It was a real bed, mattress and everything.

After I came out of the bathroom, Aaron went in. While he was in there, I tried to turn my mind off.

Aaron came out of the bathroom in clean shorts.

"I never thought that a shower could feel so good," Aaron said.

"That's what mom and I have been trying to tell you for years, dude," I said as he sat down on the other edge of the bed.

"Wait...do you think they think we're married?" he asked.

"I don't know. Probably. We can set the record straight in the morning. Besides, we've shared a bed before...bed-hog."

Aaron chuckled a little bit.

The voices outside lingered long into the night, but I was soon asleep.

Aaron was awake before me and getting dressed.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey."

"Beru just came by and knocked on the door. Breakfast is ready whenever we are."

I stood up, stretched, put on on some sandals and my sweatshirt before following Aaron where Beru said the food would be.

Beru was a pretty blonde girl with sparkling blue eyes and an ever present smile.

"Good morning. Thank you so much for rescuing Owen and the others last night. Five of the men and eight children stayed, but they are all gone. They were wise to wait until daylight, though. Would you like some potatoes? Are you two a husband and wife bounty hunter team or something?"

My stomach growled in response.

She motioned for us to sit at the table.

We did, and she served us some potatoes, meat, and some other vegetable.

"What would you like to drink?"

"Water," Aaron and I both said.

Aaron prayed for both of us before we dug in.

It was all delicious- different, but delicious.

"Thank you, Beru. This is lovely. Have you already eaten?" I asked.

"Yes. Owen went to go check on some of the vaporators, but he will be back soon. He knows you'll have questions for him."

"To answer you second question, no. We aren't a husband and wife. Jo here is my older sister. We were doing something with some friends and got separated."

 _No kidding do we have questions, and good save, Aaron._

We ate in silence and just as we were putting our dishes in the sink, Owen returned from his rounds.

"So glad you guys are awake."

"So are we," Aaron said.

"I'm sure you have some questions for me, so if you'll follow me to the sitting room. Thank you, Beru, for looking after our guests."

Beru smiled and washed the dishes.

"Thank you," I called behind me as I followed him.

Already in the sitting room was his father.

"This is my father, Cliegg."

"Pleasure to meet you two. You saved my son. I don't know if I could have taken both my son and beloved wife in just a few days...I'm sorry…" Cliegg teared up.

"We are so sorry for your loss," I said, a lump forming in my own throat. "I'm sure she was a lovely lady."

"She was…

"Anyway, we will try to help you, since you obviously aren't from around here. What would you like to know?"

"What were those things?" Aaron asked.

"Those were Tusken Raiders or Sand People. They are not friendly. They are incredibly hostile, and they hate us just as much as we hate them. As you saw, those were just men. My step-son, Anakin, murdered some of them when he brought his mother back.

"They had taken her about a month before he arrived. We had already believed her to be dead, but she...lived long enough to see him.

"Those leftover men have been rounding up stray farmers for the last several days, ever since Anakin and his friend, Padmé, left. I had hoped Owen would be safe…"

"They took me while I was repairing a moisture vaporator in broad daylight. A gutsy move coming from them. They were out for blood. As you saw, Airk was not going to cut it."

My eyes flashed back to the sight of the bashed in skull, and I felt somewhat ill.

"They are a bloodthirsty people. Humans have wronged them in the past. Of course, we would never intentionally hurt them now, but there are still some that harbor grudges. We can understand why Anakin...reacted the way he did. They tortured and ultimately killed his mother."

"I already told them that, Dad."

"Ah. Well, I can't give you much in payment, but we can give you a ride. We have no need for that land skiff, so Owen will take you to a port and sell that land skiff while there and bring a public transport back. I'm sorry we can't give you more."

"No. It's alright. You've done more than enough already," I said.

"We will pack up our things and be ready to go when you are able to take us. Thank you," Aaron said, genuinely thankful (as was I).

An hour and a half later, we departed the ranch in the land skiff. Cliegg and Beru waved us off.

Even though I barely knew them, I was sad to leave. They seemed like such nice people, and Aaron and I waved as we rode away.

We rode through the desert for a long time. I don't know how long, but it certainly beat walking it.

Owen and Aaron talked a little bit. It turned out, Owen was not much older than we were. He'd lived here for quite some time, and he loved his step-mother. She had been a slave (Anakin had been, too). Cliegg bought her from a junker, Watto, and fell in love with her. Then he freed her, and married her.

It was a sweet story for such a sad, strange planet.

Owen pulled up to a cliff.

"That down there, is Mos Eisley Spaceport. It's full of the galaxy's scum, but that's where we are headed. You'll be able to probably get rides for labor or a good price."

"Well...is there somewhere we can get cheap drinks? I could do with a coke."

"A what?" Own asked Aaron.

"A Coke. Coca-Cola. Ice Cold?"

"No idea what that is, but there is a little cantina down there. They may have something like this is...Coke for you to drink. I'll meet you there and get you each a drink. I'll be able to afford that much. After all, you did save my life."

Owen drove down the canyon and dropped us off at the cantia.

"I'll be back soon. The place where I'm going to sell it isn't far from here."

"Okay."

Since we weren't crossing the desert, we were both wearing normal clothes. I was wearing a blue t-shirt, denim capris, and hiking boots. I had french-braided my hair to keep it from getting stuck to my neck. Aaron was wearing a yellow t-shirt, army-camo printed cargo pants, and hiking boots.

We were wearing our giant camping bags and supplies when we walked into the dim bar.

EVERYONE went silent and stared. We stuck out like hillbillies in Los Angeles.

Quietly, we sat down in the corner.

 _Hurry back, Owen…_

END OF CHAPTER FOUR


	5. Chapter 5

WPRT Ch.5 _Bar_

Aaron:

*Stare*

"... Uh huh, hi?"

Everyone in the bar stared a second longer before going back to whatever they were doing before. After the starring stopped, I noticed that not everyone here was human. It was almost like _Star Trek_. This bar had creatures of all kinds, all people. Cat like races, lizardmen, brutish monsters. Anything you could think how other life would look like was in that room. It was like some sort of fantasy rpg. All that was needed was funky music, and then it would be the dream.

Jo and I started to pull out drinks we saved when we were in the desert. Jo pulled out her canteen of water while I pulled out a can of the good stuff from my secret compartment.

"Really? You had that on you this entire time. I would have liked to have known that was on the table for our supplies when we were dying of thirst."

"Well, I wanted to save it for last just in case we ran out."

Jo huffed.

"Well, I can't blame you, Coke is your life source."

"You KNOW IT!"

A few of people turn our direction at this statement, but turned back not a moment later.

Before I continued, I took a big sip from the can.

"AH, life returns…. Hey Jo, I need to tell you something."

I motioned for her to move in closer so that others couldn't hear. And she did just that.

"Last night, I didn't sleep well. That hasn't happened to me in a long time. And when I did actually sleep it was not deeply. I kept hearing whispers and mumbling."

Jo took immediate interest in what I said when I mentioned lack of sleep.

She then asked "What did they say?"

"I don't know, it was gibberish. None of it made sense. It was a weird dream. I heard, but saw nothing."

I sighed and continued.

"But that's not the weirdest part. When I woke up, I felt amazing, like a million bucks."

"Well an explanation could be that some people get weird bursts of energy from lack of sleep."

But she didn't look sure of self and added to the mystery.

"I had almost the exact same problem. I had trouble sleeping and it was short bursts."

She paused to think if she should tell me what happened next.

"But when I slept, I saw things, blurred images, like looking through wax paper. But the strangest thing about it was I didn't hear a thing, just... silence. And, when I woke up, I felt great, too, even though you know I'm not a morning person. At all."

 _Hmmm. That's just as bad as I had it. Not that feeling good is bad, just the dream part._

"I'm sure it's nothing, I just wanted to let you know. Let's forget the whole thing and drink in peace."

"You're right. Cheers."

We drank quietly for a few minutes before I noticed Jo looking depressed a bit.

I groaned

"What's wrong?"

"I want milk."

 _What?_

"Ok? Why don't you ask for some?"

"Yeah, but this is a bar. Do they even sell it?"

Not a moment after she said that, we overheard someone ask for some.

I then looked at her giving her a face that said her question was answered.

"Ok, I guess they do, but what about Owen? Shouldn't we wait for him?"

"Look, I'm not sure he would care, considering we saved him and other people's lives yesterday."

"Yeah, but-"

"Come on now, you're a big girl now. You can do it. Go ask the nice man for some milk."

I couldn't contain my laughter, because she looked like she wanted to kill me.

"Hey now, I'm the older sibling, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah. You will bring death and destruction on me."

She rolled her eyes and got up to ask for a glass of milk. I was still laughing on the inside. After she walked away, I tried to come up with how we got to this point.

 _It doesn't make any sense how we got here. We slept, and we woke up somewhere else, in the middle of a desert no less. What are we doing here? Well, if we got put here, the least we could do was explore a bit. I will let her know when she comes back._

When she returned, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. She was carrying a glass of milk alright, but the milk was blue. BLUE!

 _I sure hope she didn't pay for a glass of moldy milk. Na, it probably has blue dye in , that actually makes sense._

She sat down staring at the glass.

"It's blue."

"That's a great observation, Jo. What else can you tell me?"

"I don't want to know where it came from."

"Come now, you need your milk."

"Just stop.."

With that she took a gulp.

"Well, how is it?"

She paused thinking what to say.

"It's not that bad, just….different. I can tolerate it though."

She decided to take another sip. Acting as if she was an investigator, trying to see if something was added. Then I had an idea, for my amusement of course.

I put a big grin on my face, and said "You know that's alien sperm, right?"

Her face change from thought to fear in an instant.

 _Mission accomplished_.

Or, so I thought. she spat some on my face. And when she did, a few others look our direction once more, and we paid them no mind.

"You're disgusting!"

"Ok, you're right, that was uncalled for. But you got to admit, that was funny!"

She rolled her eyes at this and went back to her drink.

 _I think now is a good time to go for a little stroll outside._

I stood up and said, "I'm going out for a bit."

She looked shocked at this, but only asked, "What about Owen?!"

"You'll be here when he gets here and you will tell him I won't be far. Besides, you're armed, with two weapons no less. You'll be fine."

She sighed. "Fine. Just go."

With that, I got up and walked out of the bar. I had to admit, this place looked amazing. It was a dump, but amazing. This place seemed to have it all. Food, electronics, slaves-.

 _Wait. What?_

I saw a stand that looked to be a normal auction, but instead of good conditioned furniture or a used car, it was people. They had creatures from a wide variety of races with some sort of collars on their necks, definitely not for decoration. None of them looked happy or in good condition. I mean, this was wrong on so many levels. Then, a freaking robot walked up to a podium and started talking.

"These slaves are people and their families who have failed to pay their debts to Jabba the Hutt. All of which have yet to be chipped. As soon as they have been paid for, we will chip them for you."

As soon as the droid stopped talking, one slave bumped the droid out of the way to say something before he could be pushed back.

"Please, LET US GO, we have Jabba's money, it's at the farm in our safe. We weren't able to pay because I was captured by Sand People. I only got away because some strangers saved us. The Tuskens killed my oldest son, Arik. Please, don't take what's left of my Family."

Airk's father looked to be on the verge of tears after that last part, but, the only response he received was an electric shock around his collar. Then the droid got back up and counteracted the slave's statement.

"Ignore what this slave just said, they had plenty of time to pay Jabba, but failed to do so. And who would believe what you said? Anyone can say that they have been taken by those savages."

Then the machine turned to Airk's father, who was still on the floor, and said."And you dare insult the Mighty Jabba's protection for who work day and night for everyone here?"

The droid pressed a button on a remote and it caused a shock not only on him, but everyone with a collar on. Everyone who did yelled in pain, one kid fell to the floor unconscious.

The unchangeable face of the droid turned back to his audience.

"Now, shall we start the bidding?"

 _This isn't right, but what can I do, they obviously need help. I sure could use some help right now._

Not a moment too soon, I saw something out of the corner of my eye, looked like one of the guards guarding the slaves pulling some kid into an alley. I couldn't let this go, not another kid.

END Ch. 5

A.N. Thank you, for those who have stuck with our story so far. And we hope to continue this adventure for a long time. Lord willing, we'll see you again.


	6. Chapter 6

WPRT Ch. 6

 _Milk, Money, and a Meeting_

Jo:

I sat quietly drinking my blue milk, (which I have never be able to look at the same way again).

I was finishing up my first glass when Owen returned.

"Where's Aaron?" he asked, helping himself to a sip of the Coke Aaron had left behind.

He shuddered at the sudden sugar shock, seemingly caught off guard by the sweet, fizzy beverage.

"He went outside. He didn't say where he was going, though."

"He will probably be fine. I mean, even though there's a lot of scum out here, if he doesn't have any credits or anything else of value on him, he should be fine."

"What are credits?"

"Galactic currency. Here on Tatooine, they don't work as good currency, though, if you collect a bounty or something, it will be in credits. Sorry if that's confusing."

"It's okay."

"Come to think of it, there might have been a bounty on those Sand People. We can check in a little bit. I know I said I'd buy you guys one drink, but I think I should reconsider that. Would you like a second drink?"

"Yes, please, Owen," I said.

While he went to get us a second round, I took to opportunity to look around at the patrons. All kinds of aliens in there. Small ones, big ones, bald ones, furry ones, old ones, young ones, nice looking, scary looking, loud, and short. Directly at the bar, was a reptilian looking one, drinking what appeared to be hard liquor. He had green skin, red eyes, and wore a yellow jumpsuit. Across his back was what looked like it could be an explosive device, and next to him was a rifle.

"Owen, is he somebody?" I asked as Owen returned.

"The guy at the bar? He's Bossk, a bounty hunter. Local rumors say he stops in here after a mission's gone bad, but I doubt it. Jabba the Hutt, a gangster and crime lord, is based here, and so he's probably here for a job."

"Ah."

I didn't know what else to say to Owen. I usually got along well with men, but since we had so little in common, I wasn't sure what to say. I didn't want to pull out my phone. The battery was on its last little bit, so I didn't want to turn it on yet, though I was dying to know what time it was back home.

Two men came into the bar at once. One was one of the farmers from the night before, and the other was a hard looking man wearing silver and blue armor, a helmet under one arm.

The farmer went to the bar and ordered something, while the other man walked up to Bossk and started a conversation in hushed tones.

Normally, I wouldn't have looked twice at the man, but he was handsome upon closer observation. He had a full head of black hair, dark brown eyes, and a few well-placed scars. He didn't look over at me. Yet.

"That guy that came in with the helmet and armor is Jango Fett. He's one of the most vicious bounty hunters in the galaxy. He never fails. Ever. He doesn't care if he takes you in dead or alive. He will get his money. No matter what it takes."

The farmer was slamming shot after shot of whisky. I was both impressed and disgusted. But he didn't' stop until he saw Owen and I sitting in the corner. I was going to ignore him, but he staggered up and pulled my braid.

"You're the g-girl f-from last n-night. Where's your b-brother?"

"He's around," I answered.

"Hey! Everyone! This girl and her brother saved us last night from those T-tuskin Raiders last night. She's a hero. Pay 'em the bounty, Wuher."

The bartender, Wuher, looked me over and shook his head.

"No. Not without proof."

"B-but I'm tellin' you, she and her brother saved us."

"That they did," Owen agreed.

"That's fine, Geck, but without proof, she doesn't get her money. And that's final."

Now, we were being watched by Bossk and Jango Fett. I did not like being the center of attention. Heck, I hated being sung the birthday song and forget raising my hand during a lecture at school.

"I don't have a body, but I have this," I said while holding out the rifle I took from the camp.

My blue eyes met Jango Fett's brown ones, and I blushed.

There were murmurs of both approval and disbelief among the patrons of the bar.

"That's one of their weapons alright, but how can I be sure that you got it from them last night?" Wuher asked.

"I suppose you can't, but you should take the word of two witnesses," Jango Fett said.

I was surprised that he was standing up for a nobody, especially from somebody with such a violent reputation.

Wuher seemed to consider this as he mixed another concoction for a lobster-like alien.

"Alright. But if word gets back to Jabba that I'm giving out reward money willy-nilly, he could have my hide."

"Don't worry, Wuher. I'll keep Jabba happy," Jango said, as he approached our table.

Owen looked nervous.

"He your brother?"

"No," I answered, my ears hot from blushing, "he's outside somewhere looking around."

"I won't be here much longer, because my son and I had to stop back over here and he's outside."

 _Of course you have a kid. And probably a wife._

"I'm sure you and your wife are very proud of your son," I said, smiling a borderline fake smile.

 _That was a bad way to ask if he had a wife, dummy._

"I'm not married. I uh...he's technically my clone, but I'm raising him as my son."

 _That's really odd, but he's not married._

"Where did you receive your training?" he asked.

 _I don't have any training._

"We...uh...what?"

"Your bounty hunter training?"

"We don't have any," I admitted. "We were just in the wrong place at the right time, I guess. My brother is a strategic thinker and I'm good at following orders, so we just...well, we winged it.

Wuher brought over a card.

"That's 2500 credits. Spend them wisely," he sneered and walked away.

It was a chip about the size of a credit card. I reached into my pack and pulled out my wallet. I slid the chip into a vacant slot.

Jango opened his mouth to say something, but just as he did, the yelling of a man and a boy broke his thoughts.

"Boba?" he asked loudly.

"That's my brother's yell. He makes that sound when he's frustrated," I said, hopping up and sprinting out the door with the shotgun.

Jango pulled out duel pistols and followed me out the door.

I heard Owen say he was going to stay behind and watch our stuff until we came back for it.

END CHAPTER SIX


	7. Chapter 7

WPRT Ch. 7 _Double Rescue_

Aaron:

I ran from the crowd to go after the kid and the guard. I stopped and waited around the corner, and I heard some talking.

"Your Father has been a problem for my client's business long enough. He has been known as the best bounty hunter for far too long. So, he has decided to reward him by removing him of the only thing he loves before he kills him. You should be thankful I don't like spilling the blood of children. Now you get too be a slave on a far away planet, where your father will never find you."

It was the boy who spoke next. Very smugly, might I add.

"Then you underestimate him. He is the best for a reason. He will find me no matter what."

The guard laughed at this and said, "I doubt that."

 _Now or never._

I ran around the corner and pistol whipped the back of the middle guys head and knocked him out cold. All eyes turned towards me.

The guards were human, but the one doing the talking was some sort of lizard man, similar to the one in the bar, but this one had different armor. The thugs had looks of shock and rage.

 _One liner time_.

"You know, it's pretty sad someone has to pay four people to go after a kid."

If they weren't mad when I showed up, they were now. The Lizard man's face scrunched up and yelled to the remaining guards "GET HIM!"

Before they could, Lizard man yelled loudly and fell to his knees. The guards were distracted by this and I whacked another behind the head.

 _Call me Old Whackamole._

I was not lucky with the other as he charged right into me and knocked the Colt out of my hand.

But, I was still in the game.

I put my hands around his head and brought it up for momentum. And just as fast as I brought it up, I brought his head down, right into my kneecap.

He was out cold.

 _Alright, three for four. Thankfully, none of them were armed with guns from what I see. Now, I wonder, what happened to lizard face?_

I turned to see the kid standing triumphant with one foot on top of Mr. Lizard's body with a stun stick of some kind.

The kid looked down to the body and said, "Thanks for the weapon, wimp."

I smirked at his comment, then bent over to pick up my gun to holster it.

 _Thankfully, I didn't have to waste ammo. I only have about a few mags worth for my gun, and I don't want to run out so fast. This gun means a lot to me._

"Thanks for the help, and I sorry you had to do that. I let my guard down when I shouldn't have. Especially Mos Eisley, of all places. The name's Boba, you?"

He walked over to me and held out his hand for a shake.

I shook his hand and said, "Aaron Shepard."

"Well, Aaron, you saved my dad a lot of trouble. But, I got to ask…"

He lost his smirk.

 _This can't be good…_

"Why did you help me, I mean, you're definitely not native… I mean, look at you."

He was smiling at this jab at me. I don't blame him for making fun of my outfit.

 _My sister and I are out if place._

Before I could retort, his face went back to what it was.

"Anyone else would have just brushed it off, or would be too afraid to get in trouble. And you heard who my father was: the infamous Jango Fett. He has far from a good reputation."

I thought for a moment before I replied.

"The answer is this: I don't want to let another thing bad happen to a kid as long as I'm around. Yesterday, my sister and I saw a kid, a few years older than you, killed before our eyes. Not just killed, brutalized. His head was smashed to pieces, by Tusken Raiders."

He went wide eye at what I said. And looked as if he wanted to say something. But he held off for now and let me continue.

"Less than an hour later, me and my sister liberated that camp and freed the families there. But...I couldn't look at the father in the face. I could have done something. Even at the cost of my life, could have done something. So, I told myself, that if I saw any kid in trouble, no matter what, I would save him, even if I have to die. I wouldn't let families be broken if I could help it."

He looked shock by what I just said. The family part seemed to hit him the most. But, I was wasting time. I got to go.

As I was turning. I was interrupted by Boba asking "Where are you going?"

"To keep my promise. Before I went to help you, I saw the boy who died family about to be sold off as slaves, because he couldn't pay off his debt to someone named Jabba because he was captured by the raiders. I can't let that go….. I'm going to at least try to save him and everyone else Lord willing. ...I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

I turn to leave. But my hand was grabbed by Boba, telling me to hold on.

"You don't have to do it alone, I could help. I am trained by the best bounty hunter in the Galaxy. This would be too easy with my skills. It's the least I could do."

I thought for a second, "Well, any help would do."

"Alright, but we need to be a team on this, partners?"

Boba didn't hesitate on that and held out his hand for a shake and said firmly, "Partners."

I decided to humor him with something different. I held out a fist instead. He was obviously confused, so I told him, "You make your own fist, and bump it."

And he did that, but, was still confused at its significance.

 _Kids these days._

We were about to leave the ally, and then I heard from behind us…

* **I'LL KILL YOU!***

As soon as I heard this, I pulled Boba away from where he was standing, almost about to be shot by a beam of orange light. And no sooner did I pull him out of the way, I pulled out my colt and returned the shot aiming directly at the head of the lizard man. His brains blew out from the back of his head, painting the sand red.

Boba got up and saw what happened and said, "How DID you DO THAT?!" He saw me walk up to the corpse of the now dead Lizard man, and he watched me as I looted the body.

"How DID you KNOW?!"

"He yelled out "I'll kill ya!" with his weird accent. I guessed he was going for you, and pushed you out of the way."

"What?"

I ignored his question for now and just tossed him the blaster. He catches the the blaster, and was shocked I would give it to him.

"We can play 20 questions later, right now we have some people to save."

With that, me and Boba started sprinting towards the crowd that was bigger than before. I could hear that Robot talking once more. Time to plan. I signal Boba to stop and ask him while pointing across the street, "Do you think you could get to the top of that roof?"

"Sure can, lemme guess, cover fire?"

I give a nod and say, "Wait for my signal. Also, could you hand me the stun stick?"

He tossed it to me, and we both turned to do our parts, but Boba said ,"Wait," I turned back to him and he went on. "If your going to take out one of them, take out the auctioneer first, they have a remote that controls those collars. If he becomes desperate. He will terminate them with the bombs in the collars."

I gave him a nod, and he goes off to the other building.

 _Show time._

As I move through the bigger crowd, I started to hear Mr. Roboto again. I saw who was up next.

It was Airk's father!

"Now we move on to the last slave here, a human male, still a few good years in him.

Let's hear some offers."

I yell out loud "I will take him, and the rest of the ones you have sold."

All of the people were shocked by what I just said. Some of the people looked mad that they might miss out on a deal.

"That is a bold request stranger, you look very young. Who are you, to ask something like this from us?"

Airk's father looked up to see who was buying him, and was shocked to see that it was his rescuers from the night before. At least half his rescuers.

"Aaron Shepherd, and I'm here to pay you one."

The crowd laughed at this.

"I'm sorry **Mr. Shepherd,** it's going to take a lot more than one peggat for something like that- wait, why are you laughing."

Everyone stopped and looked at me. All of them were just as puzzled when they saw I _was_ laughing.

I stopped after a few seconds and sighed.

 _Man, the heat must be finally getting to me._

"Sorry, not one 'Peggat.'" I drew my gun and fired at the robot's head. When the .45 round hit, the kinetic energy alone popped off the head, killing it. The remote was still in his hand.

"ONE SHOT!"

The crowd started screaming and running all directions, knocking out a few of the guards by trampling over them. A few guards on the stage were armed with guns aimed right at me and were shot by a couple of laser bolts from across the street.

The guards off stage looked like they didn't know what to do, until one of them said. "Get him!" They armed themselves with more of those stun sticks.

 _Time to try this baby out_.

I turned on my stunstick and aimed for the first guard's throat with a stab motion. He fell fell forward to the ground twitching.

Another one almost got me with a thrust aimed towards my stomach, but I moved in time. I rewarded his effort with a jab in the back with the stick. The the remaining two tried overwhelming me but failed. One of them was shot from across the street before he could strike. That distracted his buddy, so I brought the stun stick across his face, knocking him out.

Then I saw the guard who yelled "get him" near the slaves, going towards the remote still in the droids hand. As he was reaching for it, I shot him in the hand with my colt, keeping him from pressing the "Termination" button. He yelled in agony while gripping his hand. He then jumped off the stage with the slaves still there, and made a dash for the nearest alley. I got onto the stage to go after him.

Surprisingly , before the guard went into the alley, he yelled to me, "You have made a GRAVE mistake today, Jabba will have your HEAD FOR THIS SHEPHERD!" With that, he ran off.

 _Great thinking Aaron, now the space mafia knows your name. Well, it doesn't matter. I need to know how to use the remote._

Boba was now running up to me in the now almost deserted square. As he got closer, he held out his hand, which I assume was for me to hand him the remote. And I did just that. He took but a few moments to look at the remote and pressed a green button. As soon as it was pressed, all of the collars fell into the sand. They had their freedom now.

I wasted no time in saying, "Get out of here, quick! Before someone comes back to get you all!"

Almost all of them did just that, except Airk's family.

"That's twice you have saved us. How can we…" I cut him off, as his family didn't even have time for thanks.

"You can pay me back by us never having to rescue you again, and getting off this planet."

Of course he knew I meant it in humor, not anger, and smiled, giving me nod before running off with his family.

Boba looked relieved as they left.

"It's a good thing they weren't chipped, otherwise, we would have a lot harder time doing that. Chips are harder to find when they're installed."

I nodded in confirmation at this fact, and this scenario, it reminded me of something you would do in video games. It was very invigorating to do and felt like I could do more.

But before I could think more on this energy, I heard Boba utter the words, "Oh no…"

I looked to see what he was talking about. My jaw dropped a little as I saw the same boat that my sister and I liberated from the War Raiders, in the hands of similarly dress guards as the one we just took out.

"Dang it Lars…"

"What?"

"No time for questions, RUN!"

We ran the opposite direction.

 _We obviously_ _can't out run something like that, we need to use its size against it…. THE ALLEYS!_

"Quick! Down this alley!"

"Right!"

We both make a sharp turn down it to lose the guards, and succeeded, and we heard the gunner say, "Quick! Go around before we lose them!"

But it was too late, because by the time they came around, we were already out of sight near some big pieces of junk.

"Well, that was close. Well, thanks again Boba with that, your a pretty good shot with that gun.

"Thanks, I learned from the best. But, where did you learn? And what kind of blaster is that?"

"Well, I learned how to shoot from my dad and firearms instructor at my home towns shooting range. And as for the blaster, it's not one, just a gun."

Boba looked shocked at this, "A SLUG THROWER! Your even braver than I thought! Although, that has to be strong if it knocked that Droids head off."

" _I guess robots are called droids here. I'll keep that in mind_."

"Well, maybe they have been just misunderstood as a weapon here."

But before we could continue, the junk in front of us started moving away.

 _And are those…. Feet?!..._.

Ah it was a droid, we were hiding behind a droid, not junk. This place kept getting weirder by the second. And that wasn't a bad thing necessarily. Just…. Different.

As we move forward, we noticed the bar across the street. The same one I left my sister in.

"Hey, my dad is in there now, he might be able to help you."

"Really, that's the same one my sister is in right now."

I put my head out of the alley, looking left and right.

"The coast is clear."

We both walked out of the alley at a jogging pace. We made it halfway before the guards came around the corner…

Boba and I thought the same thing, and said in unison:

"OH COME ON!"

END CHAPTER


	8. Chapter 8

WPRT CH. 8

 _We're Going on a What?_

Jo:

Bossk, Jango Fett, and I all ran outside to see my brother and a boy standing on one side, an empty patch of ground in the middle, and a crew of people on the other side. They were in the middle of the street.

"Boba!" Jango shouted.

Boba looked.

Aaron put his arm out to try and ease Boba behind him, acting like a shield.

I stepped out with my hands up. Jango Fett followed me, as did Bossk. We walked up to Aaron, and I outstretched my arms to the kid.

"Boba, my name is Jo. You and I are going to go back into the bar for Aaron's and my stuff, okay?"

Boba looked at his father who nodded his permission and gave a hand-signal. He then came into my embrace and cowered there, innocently..

"You two aren't going anywhere!" the leader of the other crew shouted.

"He's just a kid," I argued, shooting the iciest stare I could manage.

 _Do not mess this up, Jo. Do not mess this up._

I maintained eye contact with their de facto leader.

"Fine," he finally said, "get the kid into that cantina."

 _With pleasure._

Once inside the cantina, I steered Boba back to the corner booth.

"Owen, it's been a pleasure, but we gotta go," I said quickly as I threw on my backpack.

Boba slung on Aaron's bag.

"This is heavy," he commented.

"Well, it was supposed to be a four day camping trip," I explained. "There were a lot of supplies...and two more people. Come on. Let's go back out there. We don't have much time."

I decided to take the long-rifle from the Sand People, in my left hand, and the double-barrel in my right.

"Will we see each other again?" Owen asked after me.

"We'll meet again. Don't know where, don't know when. But I know we'll meet again some sunny day."

Owen looked at me funny.

"Never mind. If you and Beru get married, get word to us. She's a wonderful lady, Owen. Goodbye. And thanks for the drinks and lodging."

"You're welcome," he called after us as we walked out.

I poked my head around the corner. They were gone.

"Okay, Boba, think you can keep a steady jog with that heavy pack on?"

"I think so."

"Good, because we are going to have to find them."

We took off turning right at a slow, steady jog. It was hard to maintain in the blistering heat, but we really had no choice. If we took a leisurely walk, there was a possibility of being separated forever, which was unacceptable.

We found them, trapped in a corner in an alley.

"Boba, crouch in that doorway," I mouthed.

He did as he was told.

The building had stairs to climb up.

I did my best to climb the stairs silently.

I put my pack down on the roof and held the shotgun in my right hand. The long-rifle would have been useless.

I aimed the shotgun at the leader.

"Hey! Let my people go!" I shouted as loudly as I could. Luckily for me, I had a deepish voice for a female. Not as deep as Bea Arthur's, but definitely a more mature voice for my 24 years of age.

The new set of enemies turned to look at me.

Aaron facepalmed.

"Or what? You'll kill us?"

"Yes," I said firmly. I didn't want to use the gun to anyone or anything, but I would to defend myself and my family.

"You're bluffing," the guy spat.

"Am I?" I furrowed my brow and scrunched my lips to make them white like Dad did when he lost his temper.

Jango activated his jet pack and drew his guns. The attackers turned to fire at Aaron, Jango, and Bossk, so I shot their leader while Jago shot the others.

My stomach twisted and I felt terrible. I had been lucky in the Tusken Camp, when I tripped the raider and he fell on on my arm, leading me to pull the trigger. It had not been intentional. This had been.

I tried to shake the feeling.

Aaron climbed into the air ship with Bossk, and Jango Fett landed.

"Boba!" he called.

The boy jumped out from the doorway and hopped aboard.

Jango raised the ship enough that even with the heavy pack on, I jumped the gap from the roof to the ship and had a gentle fall.

"Who were those people?" I asked Jango Fett.

"Some of Jabba the Hutt's goons. They wanted something. What did they want?" he asked, turning to Aaron.

"I may have sprung some slaves…"

"You sprang some slaves?" I asked.

"Yes. I recognized one of them. He was a farmer from last night...the father of the boy who was killed while trying to run. Then, they tried to take Boba. I couldn't see anything bad happen to another kid. So, I sprung them. Those people didn't like it. At all."

"That's their livelihood. Jo said you didn't have any training. How are you managing with no training?" Jango asked.

"We just are. How are we going to get out of here?" I cut in.

"Where do you need to go?"

"Dude, we don't even know where we are," Aaron said.

"Then you can go with me back to Geonosis. Count Dooku will have to decide what is to become of you."

"Count Dooku? What's he? Some sort of Bureaucrat in this dump?" I asked.

"Uhhhh…...he's more than a Bureaucrat. He's in charge of a committee right now and I'm currently on his payroll."

"Well, I suppose that if we ask you no questions, you'll tell us no lies. So, we will go with you to Geonosis and meet with this Dooku," I agreed.

The ship was massive, and I was unsure if I wanted to get on it. I hated flying in airplanes, and this was at least twice the size of a transcontinental jumbo jet.

I swallowed hard.

"So, how long is this flight going to be? Two hours? The longest I've ever been on a flight is four hours, from Indianapolis to LAX," I said.

"At least a day."

"Surely this planet isn't that large that Geonosis couldn't be that far," I groaned.

"What?"

"Another city, right?"

"No. We are on Tatooine. Geonosis is another planet entirely."

"Another planet?"

"This is an intergalactic craft," Jango said.

"A what?"

"Jo, it's a spaceship," Aaron said.

"She's a Firespray-31-class. I call her Slave I, though now that Boba was almost a slave, I should change that name."

"Probably," I agreed.

"Anyway, Jabba likes me, but he won't like us killing his goons."

I didn't say anything. I also didn't move.

"Get on board. We need to go now."

I did as he said and followed Aaron up the ramp.

Boba shoved his way past me. I was slightly offended. I didn't have to try and help him. But, any kid living this kind of life would have to have suffered somewhat.

"Son, apologize to Jo, and then show them to the bunks. After they've secured their belongings, bring them back to the cockpit for take-off."

"Yes, sir," Boba grumbled.

The bunks were a little smaller than my twin bed back home, but I always slept on the edge of the bed anyway.

Boba showed us how to lash our packs to the legs of the bunk, and walked us back to the cockpit, per Jango's orders.

There were six seats in the cockpit. Bossk and Jango sat the controls. Aaron and I sat behind them, and Boba sat at a radar panel of some sort against the wall.

Thankfully, the seatbelts were not that different than one in a car, and I was able to strap myself in.

Even though Boba was behind us, I could feel his eyes boring into my soul, like when you sit up front at church.

"Boba, please stop staring at me," I said.

Jango and Bossk started fiddling with the controls, and I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and held it.

 _I hate flying. I hate flying. I hate flying._

(Honestly, this is sort of ironic. I hate flying in airplanes; however, if you were to ask me what superpower I would want, my chosen superpower would be flight. But then, I'd be in control of how high, far, and fast. In an airplane, it'd be out of my control, and it freaks me the frick out, though now that I have piloted things myself, I am less afraid).

The engines roared and my gut suddenly jerked back like on a roller coaster (I hate those, too). I let out the deep breath and took a second one, my eyes still closed.

Aaron slapped my arm after another couple of minutes. I opened my eyes, and in front of us was a black void, sprinkled with tiny lights. It was dazzling.

I briefly forgot Boba was giving me the death-stare, and was caught up in the majesty of the expanse.

Growing up, I once said to my mother I had wanted to be an astronaut. Unskilled in math and science, she basically told me it would never happen. Of course, when I had my first roller coaster experience and was completely freaked out, I realized it was a bad idea. But now that I was here in space, I was in awe. Now, I assure you I had no desire to go on a space-walk or anything, but it was an amazing sight to see.

We stayed like this for a few minutes, sitting in the quiet.

When my thoughts came back into focus, I realized my energy was gone. The heat can do that to you.

I unstrapped my restraints and went back to the bunks.

I took off my shoes and pants, sneezed, brushed my hair, took out my teddy bear (it was small enough that Aaron didn't know I had it. If he could hide a coke, I could hide a teddy bear. Ha). I laid down and put the sheet/blanket/thing from the bunk over my legs.

He said a day, and I was determined to spend that sleeping, so as to avoid thinking about possibly dying in the cold vacuum of space.

END OF CHAPTER EIGHT


	9. Chapter 9

WPRT lX _Sci-Fact_

Aaron:

A minute after my sister went off to the bunks Boba showed us earlier, Boba got up to do who knows what, leaving me alone with Jango, Bossk, and the vastness of space before us.

Both Jango and Bossk were were typing away on the consoles in front of them, leaving me to my thoughts.

 _I can't believe this. I thought nothing could shock me after learning we were on another planet, but compared to this, that was nothing._

Staring out a minute longer, I was brought back out of my thoughts, as I was asked, "So, where you from kid?" by Bossk.

That kind of surprised me.

"A place you probably never heard of…"

At this, he finished up his calculations and spun his chair in my direction, smiling. It kind of creeped me out. It reminded me of the velociraptor in the kitchen in _Jurassic Park,_ small gap in the teeth and all.

"Try me. I have been to a lot of unknown planets."

"Ever Heard of Earth?"

I already knew the answer.

He looked to be in thought, and after a few moments he said, "No, can't say I have. Is it some backwater planet in the outer rim?"

I smiled at his attempt of an insult and responded. "No, and most likely, not even your galaxy."

Then Jango then joined in. "Then how did you end up in our galaxy?"

"Honestly, we have no clue, one minute we were asleep in our tents in Turkey Run, and then we woke up on that dust bowl of a planet. There were two more of us, but they weren't with us when we woke up. And ever since we've been here, we have had to overcome some big obstacles. And only by sheer luck and some survival training have we made it this far."

"So you have some kind of training then, but not to be a bounty hunter."

"No. My sister and I were taught how to survive in the woods by our cousins. They really gave us the love for it, and we have camped ever since. Our shooting skill come from being trained by a firearms instructor and our dad at the shooting range near our home. She has less than I do and really only worked with pistols. I worked up to firing long range rifles, some heavy hitters, like the barrett 50. Cal."

Both, however, had blank expressions at that last part.

" Well, where I'm from. The Barrett is one of the best sniper rifles in our world, and it can penetrate almost any armor. They fire something similar to this."

I pulled out one of my mags to show them the ammo. Both looked shocked.

Both said "Slug Throwers!"

 _What a degrading name for a gun, however, not far from the truth._

Jango continued, "You're pretty brave to bring that relic to fight with you. Why do you even have that anyway? Haven't your people moved past slug throwers?"

"Well, we have moved into alternate weapons, close to shooting something like you have. But that's still in the testing phase. However, the next step in terms of firearms would be railgun technology, and that is being tested by our navy."

Bossk asked a question this time. "And how far have your people made it to space?"

"Well, we have only gotten people to our planet's moon and back. And we have had some probes leave our solar system."

"You really are out of place then. Now I feel sorry for pestering you about your home."

"Nah, it's fine… I already had my 'freak out' when I learned that we were on a planet with two suns. I guess you can say we're….. _Lost in Space_!"

(The original show was better. The movie and the reboot series sucked).

Again, blank stares.

"Right. Sorry about that. I will try to not reference things you don't know in the future."

Jango said, "Well, what ever you were referencing doesn't matter right now. I want an honest answer though, if you can. Why did you save my son?"

 _This again? Let's try this a different way._

"I will answer with a couple of questions: why is that hard to believe that somebody helps a kid from being made a slave, and why not?"

None of them answered me, so I continued, "You act like it is some miracle that I risked my life to save someone, not to mention a kid, from a life of slavery."

Jango frowned at this. "I don't know how it is where your from, it's normal for people in the outer rim to see slaves on planets like that. It's pretty much a big form of income for those like Jabba. Even when people come from the core worlds for business, they don't even bat an eye at it. And you just show up and spring a bunch of slaves free, with my son no less."

"Hey, to be fair, he volunteered for that himself. I just told him what to do."

"Be that as it may, you could have said no. He is just a kid."

I raised my eyebrow and said, "Ya, a kid who knows how to fire a gun with pinpoint accuracy."

"Yet you trusted that he would follow, through. Why?"

I paused at this. I thought back to that moment and responded, "You know, I really don't remember why I thought I could. It was just like… a voice inside my head told me I could."

I tried to think back on why I thought I could trust him. But that was all I could remember.

I was brought out of this train of thought by Jango changing the subject.

"Well, never-the-less, you saved my son. And considering you have limited supplies. Perhaps I can give you some things to keep you both alive in this galaxy. Just giving you a ride doesn't feel like payment enough."

Bossk chucked, "You should feel honored. Jango here has quite a collection of hardware from the bounties he has collected over the years."

"Oh no, you don't have to do that Jango."

"I insist. If you plan to find a way back home, you're going to need more than what you've got."

 _I can't argue with that logic._

"Ok, let's take a look."

Jango stood and motioned for me to follow him.

"The room is just past the sleeping quarters."

We walked past the door and I saw my sister resting. I stopped to look inside and see how she was doing. She seemed to be having some kind of nightmare, but, overall, she looked ok. The storage room was not far, and I was surprised to see all of this technology in one room.

It had enough to make a scientist wet their pants. Guns, armor, tools, you name it. One of the first things I noticed was a small, cylindrical, handheld device. It looked like a tiny "MIG" gun that welders would use. Except, it didn't appear to connect to a hose.

"Is this a pocket welder?"

"Yes it is. I guess your people aren't that incompetent. It's used for quick, temporary fixes on small hull breaches, or sealing doors shut if your trying to slow someone after you down. You're welcome to have it. I have five other ones in here somewhere."

"Thank you, I'll be sure to get use out of this considering our luck."

He motioned for me continue looking. I needed something for my sister. I looked to my right at weapon rack and saw a big rifle. She seemed to like the rifle she had now, and a bigger one wouldn't hurt her.

"The Blastech A-240. Nice choice. Are you going to use it as your weapon?"

"It's nice, but this one is for Jo."

"Take two then, one for the each of you. I have a few extra of those."

I nodded at that and started looking over some armor.

I saw a couple of shoulder guards made out of some kind of metal.

"How about these? They look good,"

He took a few moments before saying, "I don't see why not. I don't have any use for them."

 _My sister and I can share this. One shoulder guard for the both of us._

"What do you have in terms of communication devices, do you have ear pieces?"

"Yes I've got few of them over there. You're welcome to take a couple when your're done looking for equipment."

I nodded again and looked around the room for things that would give us an edge; then I saw something that make me do a double take. It looked like a holder for the hidden blade from _Assassin's Creed_ , just without the blade. It looked capable of interchanging with anything concealable. (Jo is a huge fan of the series, she had played all of the games and had gotten all of the achievements in all of them. She would definitely pick this out).

"Is it alright if my sister takes this?"

"I got that off some assassin on Coruscant, he gave me some trouble, posing as an elderly man in need, as I was guarding some cargo for a client. Good thing he was bad at acting." He laughed while he was reminiscing. "She is more than welcome to take it. She will probably have better use of it than he did."

I look around the table where the gauntlet was, and I saw something for me.

It looked like a rock climbing set with two wire rolls around the waist on each side with a harness to hold it together.

 _This looks like the OMD gear from_ Attack on Titan _minus the blade holders and the gas cylinders. Never know when I might need a quick get away. Could have used this on Tatooine._

"How about this?"

"I've had little use out of it. I only used it a couple times for repairs for the ship. Here, I'll show you how it works."

He picked up the little remote on it that connected to the device with a cord.

"This switch controls the aim for the grapples. This button fires the grapples. If you click it again, it will ungrapple and retract. And finally, this tiny screen shows how many meters you have of cord for your grapples. Got it?"

"Yeah, it seems basic enough. I think that this is enough for Jo and I to get around and defend ourselves. Thank you."

Jango then looked like he was thinking, and said, "About that: Geonosis is a planet very similar to the world we just left. It's nothing but a dust bowl; however, unlike Tatooine, it's home to one primary race, a bug race known as Geonosians. Their race is very scientific in the pursuit of weapons of war. So when we land, please try to behave around them, and don't set them off."

"I understand. I'm going to check up on my sister. She seemed to be having trouble sleeping when I walk by."

"Go right on ahead. There is a holo player in there that can play music, if that will help her any."

I smiled, knowing that would probably work.

"It's worth a shot, thank you for the offer."

I walked off as Jango left back for the cockpit. I walked out of the room back to where Jo is, when I start to hear a video playing. It sounded like one of the WWII documentaries I had downloaded on my computer for homework. I stopped to listen.

"'There's Nothing to fear, but Fear itself!'"

 _Yep. WWII._

I decided to walk in and was shocked to see that Boba, staring at the screen, on my Laptop, wide eyed.

 _Jo, the ever so watchful guardian of our stuff. Ha ha._

I smiled at a mischievous idea.

I walked silently to the table and crouched, moving my head next to his and shouted, "What are you doing?!"

He jumped a mile and turned around with fear in his eyes.

"OH, hey Aaron, I was just…"

I raised my hand to stop him and said "Using our stuff without are permission?"

Boba looked at the ground and said sheepishly, "Yes…, I wanted to know what it was and clicked a button and it played."

"Hey, it's alright, it should be fine. I'm mostly worried about the power on it, since I don't have a way to charge it. Yet."

"Well, what is "it" then?"

"It's called a laptop. It's a portable computer. The reason that video played was that I had downloaded for me to watch later for homework." Boba looked confused.

"'Homework?'"

 _Really?_

"You know, school work done at home?"

"Wow, you go to school?"

My brain stopped working for a second.

"What do you mean by that? Don't kids your age go to school?"

Boba answered, "Not everyone, only people in the core worlds or wealthy planets can afford things like that… It's really not really a big deal. Kids like us get by."

"That doesn't make it right. For where Jo and I are from, it's a right to go to school."

"Well, that's just you. Not me."

He looked even more upset. Then I realized he had no real friends growing up. He always had to be on the move. Never knowing anyone but his father for too long.

"Hey, it's not the end of the world. A lot of famous people where I come from didn't need a fancy education. A lot of them were war heroes."

He seemed to brighten up at that, and then he said, "Thank you, but I got to ask: what was that video about anyway?"

"It was about the start of World War Two. You know, the nations that entered the the war and what caused them to join?"

"World War Two?"

"Yeah, our world has had a lot of wars. A majority have been forgotten over time, but, the most prominent would have to be World War Two. That war was setup for our people decades before it did, because of a poor resolution to World War One. A lot of people died in that war, over 100 Million in fact."

He had a look of shock at the number, "100 Million, on one world?"

"Yep, if you don't believe me, I can show you what I have on it at a later date, as I don't have a stable power supply for it now."

"What do you mean?"

I picked up the power cord and showed him the plug. "I need to custom make an outlet or an alternative charging method for this."

"Well, looks like you've got your hands full."

I sighed.

"Well, hopefully not too long. I'll keep you updated on that."

Then a moment later, we heard a little cry of "No" from Jo's bunk.

 _Right, the reason I came here…_

I walked over to her bedside to see how she was.

"What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know, after Jo and I helped those farmers from them Raiders, we've been getting weird dreams."

"Weird? Like what?"

I turned my head toward him. "From what she told me, she has been having dreams without sound, and I have been having dreams with just sound. I heardthings, but it was mostly mumbling, so I wasn't able to make it out. I could tell it was voices. The strangest part, is that when we wake up, we feel fine. It's like we never had trouble sleeping, even though we did."

Boba looked as if he was thinking about something, but only said, "That is weird, but I'm sure it's nothing."

"Right."

I turned my attention to the rest of the room.

"Whatcha looking for?"

"The holo player for music. Your father suggested it to help her sleep."

"Oh that? It's over here."

The kid led me to a metal locker. He dug inside it and pulled out something that was the size of an old record player.

"This is it. Let's see what we've got…"

Boba turned a few knobs and buttons and it came alive, it started playing some Jazz-like song in a language I didn't recognize.

"Interesting style. What's it called."

"It's called Jizz."

… _WHAAAAAAAAAAT!_

I coughed into my hand standing tall, then I fall to the floor dying of laughter.

"AAAAHHHH HA HA HA HA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH…ha haha ahhahah…haaaaaa…

I gasped before the next wave hit me.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

I was wiping tears away from my eyes when Boba walk over and bent down looking at me.

"You done?"

I sighed to catch my breath before answering.

"Yeah, sorry about that…oh wow, my sister is still asleep."

I started to get back up when Boba asked, "What was that about? What was so funny?"

"Oh, it was nothing, just some Earth humor, maybe I will tell you when you are older."

"OK?"

"Well, how does this Player work anyway?"

Boba went back over to it, and started showing me how to get signals with it, and how to save songs; however, I notice a small port.

"What's that for?"

"That? It's a connector port for other holo players, or ship systems. It allows music and holograms to download on them, or the other way around. It's designed to handle most plugins, so it could be used by any system."

I had an epiphany.

I pull out my phone, and turned it on.

Boba looked at it in awe.

I knew what he was going ask about it, "It's my SmartPhone, which is pretty much a small computer capable of all kinds of model is called a Galaxy S6. It's a little old but very reliable."

"Wow, we have Data pads similar to that. Rich people and the Army use them, but I'm sure they pale in comparison to that. Why pull it out though? I thought you needed to save power on your equipment?"

"I don't have to worry much if I use it in short bursts. I'm going to download some of our planets songs on your system."

Boba looked concerned, "Please don't break it. It's like the only thing I have to entertain myself when I go with dad on trips."

"Don't worry, I'm not taking it apart. I'm going to use my AUX cord."

"Your what?"

Both Boba and I turn to see Bossk at the door.

"An auxiliary cord is what I use so my phone is able play songs on other systems, this has a recording feature on it so I'm just going to play a few songs on it so I can save power."

"What kind of songs do you got on there?" Bossk asked from the doorway, intrigued.

"Almost any style you could think of, but I'm just going to out a few jazz song on it. And yes Boba, it's similar to your people's 'Jizz.'" I started giggling again, causing Boba and Bossk to look at each other in confusion.

"Is he alright?" Bossk asked.

"I don't know. He keeps laughing at that word. He said he would tell me when I'm older."

"Ah, there we go."

Attention was back on me, as I got it set up.

"Lets see, Jazz….. here we go, 40's is close enough. The Ink Spots."

I pressed play on my phone, and _Maybe_ play's on the speakers.

" _Maybe, you'll think of me. When you are all alone…"_

Bossik was surprised, "Haven't heard many songs in basic, mostly because they normally aren't that good. But this seems fine.

 _I guess Basic means English in this galaxy._

I turned to my sleeping sister, who seemed to be doing better.

 _Like a baby._

I moved towards Bassik and Boba.

"Well, while we're waiting, how about some games."

I pulled out a deck of cards that said one word, Uno.

-A Couple of Hours Later-

 _This is it, all of the pieces are in place, we have been defeated over and over again. But NO MORE! We cannot lose this time._

I placed my card on the stack.

 _We have him now, my brother in arms agrees. Wait, why is he smiling? No, NO, He Doesn't!_

He did, he placed it down.

"Wild Draw Four. I win again, losers."

Bossk planted his head on the table in defeat. I quickly followed suit.

I huffed.

"You win Boba, for the 15th time. Are you sure you never played this before?"

He laughed before responding, "How could I when you and this game come from another galaxy? Hmmm?"

"Yeah, yeah, but how does someone win 15 times in a row?"

"Maybe you don't have enough skill."

"I know when I've been insulted!"

"Am I interrupting something?"

Everyone at the table turned their heads to the doorway to see Jango.

I laughed, "Na, just me and Bossk losing to your son for the fifteenth time."

"I see. Well I came in to tell Boba that he should go to bed soon. We're still nine hours away from the planet."

Boba sighed, "Yes,Dad."

With that, we all got up from our spots. Boba went to the bathroom and Bossk went with Jango.

I went over to where I placed my phone and turned it off.

 _Well, I'd better get shut eye, too._

I went to where Jo was sleeping and climbed to the top bunk. When I got under the sheets, I said to Jo, "Goodnight sis."

Her answer was a snore, which put me at ease.

 _What's going on?_

Jango: Thanks again for coming Bossk, I wasn't planning for you come with us to Geonosis, let alone those kids. But, they did save Boba, and it didn't feel right leaving them there.

Bossk: It's alright, and I completely agree.

 _What is this….., What's happening, I know those voices. It's like my other dreams, but this time, I understand them?_

Bossk: But I still think you're paranoid about this job.

 _What Job?_

Jango: Maybe I am, but I can't get it out of my head that something's going to happen to me. Even if nothing happens, I would like to be a little prepared for Boba's sake.

Bossk: Fair enough. I got to ask though, what do you think of them? The Shepherds I mean.

Jango: Well, they are ignorant of the galaxy, although that not a bad thing. When we meet with Dooku, they won't know the difference between what Jedi and sith are.

 _What, what are they, and what does that have to do with anything?_

"Aaron, my dad says it's time to get up. Well be there in an Hour or so."

I opened my eyes before saying, "Alright, I'll wake Jo…"

I got up from the top bunk and climbed down and saw that Jo was still asleep.

 _Seriously, if I wasn't around she would sleep for an eternity._

I moved closer to her bunk and shook her a little.

It didn't do anything.

Then I got an idea

"There's bacon."

She jolted up in her bed almost hitting me. "Where?!"

She looks back and forth, and saw no bacon.

"There's no bacon, is there?" She looked at me as though I betrayed her.

"Not that I know of. Come on, let's get dressed for the planet."

I pointed to the table. She looked at it in confusion.

"What is all of that?"

"Our new gear. Jango was nice enough sacrifice some of his spare equipment."

"He didn't have to do that."

"But he did, check it out."

She walked over to the table and saw the shoulder guards. I explained we would be sharing them, one for each of us.

She asked about the guns, "He called them the A-240. This nob changes from safety to fire. I don't think I need to explain a trigger for you."

She rolled her eyes, but noticed the gauntlet.

"What's this."

I picked it up and tossed it to her, "Two words: _Assassins Creed_."

She was drooling at the sight of it as she put it on.

I continued the run down of the equipment as she got dressed. We also decided to take our Earth weapons with us. We walked up to the door of the bridge and I got stopped by Jo.

"What is it?"

She looked nervous, as if she was afraid to tell, "I saw something last night."

She looked even more upset.

"In your dream?" I asked.

She nodded.

I continued.

"What did you see?"

After a long pause, she took a deep breath and answered me in an ominous tone.

"Death."

End Chapter


	10. Chapter 10

WPRT CH. 10

 _Guns N' Roses and The Temptations_

Jo:

We disembarked from the spaceship into a hanger hauling our packs on our backs and our arms laden with new gear. We were greeted by a tall, older man dressed in robes of fine linen. It was hot in the hanger, and he was wearing a cloak anyway. His hair was perfectly styled and his beard neatly trimmed. For an old guy, he was easy on the eyes, and his aura of power was intoxicating.

 _It's feels like Hoover Dam in here...it's so hot._

I turned to look outside and shuddered in horror.

We were in another desert.

"Jo, are you okay?" Aaron asked.

"This is another desert."

"Well, yeah. I could have told you that from space."

"I was asleep, remember?!"

"Too bad for you."

"Not _another_ desert, bro…"

"It'll be okay, Jo."

"I see you have returned, Jango, with...guests."

"I'm sorry, Count Dooku. Bossk just got caught up in the mess with us. The other two helped save my son from slavers and then from Jabba's goons."

"I see. I was afraid you'd brought in Republic spies."

The Count looked us over again, obviously caught off guard by our strange attire.

"Welcome to the Spire on Geonosis. My name is Count Dooku. Please, allow my guards to escort you to your room to get cleaned up."

"Sir," Jango said, "they are brother and sister."

"I see. Well, then it is only proper we...split them up. Unfortunately, we don't have two completely separate rooms left. It is a small apartment with two rooms, but connected by one fresher. Is that alright?"

"That's perfect," I replied. "We are both exhausted."

"But you slept the whole way here," Aaron said.

"I'm still tired."

The guards led us away while Jango, Bossk, and Boba stayed behind and talked to our reluctant host.

Aaron and I followed our winged escorts. I was instructed to take the first door, and Aaron was taken to the second.

The room was the nicest I'd ever seen. It had a rather large bed, close to a queen-sized bed back home. The sheets were red silk and the frame was wooden. The canopy was large and also made of red silk. The bed also had white silk curtains. A dark wood chest of drawers was off to one side and a writing desk on the other. There was no mirror.

I sighed, took off my boots, and collected my bathing belongings. I set foot inside the fresher and realized it was basically a bathroom. I could see Aaron sitting on a chair next to a writing desk. His quarters were far more spartan, with a twin sized bed, grey sheets, and a small cabinet.

"Geez, this is plain," I said.

"Yeah, but it will do. What's yours look like?"

"Much nicer than this. Probably because I'm a woman. I don't know for sure. Anyway, I'm going to take a shower. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, go ahead."

I stepped away, but then stepped back to his door.

"Did he look like Saruman to to?"

"Yes, Jo. Yes he did."

"Just making sure that you saw it, too."

There was something else.

"Why do you think we aren't freaking out over the alien species we've seen?" Aaron asked before I closed the door.

"I don't know about you, but I keep hoping that I'll wake up in a bed in a mental hospital after having a nervous breakdown. I want to wake up back home. In Indiana."

Aaron shook his head and I started running the water.

After I showered, I laid on top of the bed in my sleep shorts and cami. It was cooler in here than it was in the hanger, and for that, I was grateful.

I was wishing I had some music to listen to when a loud knock on the door interrupted my thoughts.

I pulled the towel out of my hair and laid it on my shoulders to try and cover the straps and my boobs before I opened it.

Jango Fett stood at the door, holding a brown knit cowl dress, belt, and boots in one arm and a black pants, tunic, and boots in the other.

"Count Dooku requests your presence at dinner in an hour. He guessed on your sizes and requests you wear these," he handed me the brown pile.

"Thank you. I will be ready."

I am not a small woman by any means, but the dress was slightly too big. This added to the length, though, and made me feel more secure. The boots barely went over my calves. My hair dried quickly and it curled nicely. I took some bobby pins and a hair tie from my backpack and tried to style it a little cuter.

Without a mirror, I tried to imagine how I looked and decided to add my new gauntlet for effect.

When I was all dressed, I sat at the desk. Aaron came in all dolled up from the fresher.

"Well don't you look smart?"

"It's kind of itchy," he said while tugging at the collar and scratching his belly.

"It's just for dinner."

Aaron had showered, too, and he combed his hair. It also looked like he used a beard trimmer, but I didn't think he packed it- there was no need to take it on a short camping trip.

"Did you trim your beard?"

"Yes. I didn't bring a beard trimmer, obviously, but Jango Fett brought me one. I guess the Count commented on it's scraggly appearance."

"Everytime we say or think 'the Count,' I think of _Sesame Street_ ," I groaned.

"One scraggly hair ha, ha, ha. Two scraggly hair ha, ha, ha…"

"Shut up, Aaron," I said as there was another knock at my door.

I opened it.

"Are you ready?" Jango asked.

"As we will ever be," Aaron answered.

Jango held out his elbow. I took it.

 _I've never been escorted anywhere. This is awkward._

As we walked to the dining hall, I actually had a chance to observe. There were some rugs on the floor that had a Persian feel, some sculptures along the halls, and a few paintings. All were impressive and most likely expensive. Across the top of wall just under the ceiling was a long, intricate tapestry that put me in mind of the Bayeux Tapestry. The winged creatures were heavily depicted, and it looked like the tapestry was depicting them conquering what may have been a slug race of some sort. There were potted plants on both sides of the hall, evenly spaced with the sculptures and busts. I was trying to keep up with Jango Fett, and he was taking long, deliberate strides.

Aaron was two steps behind us, looking at the art, too.

"This is all nice artwork, Jango."

"The Count likes his things to be...exquisite. He has worked hard to aquire his collections. This is just one of many. He has at least six. He is a gentleman, and he values the finer things in life, though he is not above violence should the need arise."

I swallowed hard enough that Jango heard and he turned to look at me. I felt my face and ears heat up.

"Don't worry. You'll both be fine, though I may have told him a little white lie."

"Why?" Aaron asked.

"He was afraid you were spies, so I said that you were mercenaries, and helped save Boba, Bossk, and me."

"Ah," I said.

"I suggest you give him aliases."

"If you think that's best, sure. Jo, you follow my lead."

"Of course, Aaron."

We finished the rest of the walk in silence.

When we arrived at the dining hall, everyone was seated and eating.

Everyone was also a man.

I gulped again while they all rose for the arrival of a lady.

We were not formally announced, but Jango walked us to two empty seats. Aaron was put at the head opposite head of the table (across from Count Dooku). The only other people in the room I recognized were Jango and Bossk. Boba was probably in his quarters, not allowed to sit with the adults.

After I was seated, the men all sat down.

 _This is so awkward_.

Thankfully, the conversation did not concern us for a few more minutes, giving Aaron and I a chance to observe the dining hall.

The table was made of stone, and laden with platters of fruit, cheese, and crackers (the appetizers that we weren't invited to partake). The floors were stone. The walls were stone. The windows had no glass. The doors were wooden, though, as were our chairs. Our plates were porcelain and painted with flowers that looked similar to a Cherokee Rose. The silverware was heavy, and the stemware was spotless. Each place was set up like one would see in a fancy restaurant with several different forks, spoons, and knives as well as a wine and water glass.

We were not asked as a winged creatures filled both glasses for each of us.

Aaron and I did not drink, but we were too afraid to say anything otherwise, as we eyed the red liquid.

"Welcome to Geonosis. Jango Fett has told me how you rescued him, his son, and Bossk on Tatooine yesterday afternoon. He says you are both quite talented and intelligent."

"Thank you," Aaron calmly replied.

I only blushed and smiled.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"I'm Guns,"Aaron said.

"I'm Roses," I cleared my throat.

"You're Guns and Roses?"

"Yes, sir," Aaron replied quickly before taking a sip of water.

 _Guns N' Roses...geez… this is the best we can come up with?_

I also made a move to drink some water before my reaction would betray us.

"I assume you are hungry after your travels?" the Count said.

"Yes, sir. We are," Aaron answered.

Two large plates of grilled meat were set before us, as well as a rooty looking vegetable, bean sprout looking things, and a leafy green thing that I doubted was lettuce. But, being so hungry...it took all of me to control myself. Everyone at the table was already eating, so it was possible that our portions were poisoned or something.

I don't remember exactly how I came to the conclusion that the food itself was probably fine.

It was probably when Aaron took a huge bite of the meat and didn't drop dead.

Bitter poison would stand out in veggies, so I decided to just avoid the wine and try to learn about the people present.

"Guns and Roses, these are my associates: Archduke Poggle the Lesser is the Leader of the Geonosians; San Hill is Chairman of the Banking Clan; Nute Gunray and Rune Haako are representatives of the Trade Federation; Wat Tambor is the foreman of the Techno Union and executive of Backtoid Armor Workshop; Magistrate Passel Argente of the Corporate Alliance; Presidente Shu Mai of the Commerce Guild; Representative Po Nudo of the Aqualish people; and last but not least, Senator Tikkes from Mon Calamari, representing a faction of Quarrens."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all," I said politely.

It was then it occurred to me that Shu Mei was female.

 _Wasn't the first time I've been wrong…_

I took a bite of the root vegetable and then moved to take a sip of water.

"Neither of you has touched the wine. It's the finest one can acquire out here in this part of the galaxy," Count Dooku said. I knew he would be insulted if we didn't at least try it.

"I don't drink," Aaron said, "but Roses has some experience."

Aaron was referring to the time at my ex-boyfriend's family's Christmas celebration. His step-father offered me a rum ball. Thinking it was going to be like a cake pop, I obliged. I was wrong. There is raw rum in those things. My tongue was numb for about five minutes, and my throat felt like burning.

My eyes flashed at Aaron as I picked up the glass. I swirled it around as I had seen people do on television. I gulped and raised the glass to my lips and tilted it back ever so slightly. The wine grazed my lips, but I did not actually drink. I hoped that he wouldn't be able to tell.

I set the glass back onto the table, and said, "Savory and dry."

Dooku seemed pleased with that response, so I knew I had used the right terms.

"Did you really drink it?" Aaron hissed quietly through an uneasy, false smile.

"Not a chance," I hissed back.

"What kind of training have you had? We may be interested in securing your services long term."

My mouth went dry.

"Mainly just some shooting training, some endurance training, and Roses has some patience training."

I almost laughed at that. I taught the preschool class at church for eighteen months. That really was a patience exercise.

"Neither of us is dumb, but I'm certainly the better strategist. We've also had some intense combat experience"

I nodded my agreement.

 _We never would have survived the camp two days ago without- that was two days ago?! Wow, I guess time flies when you're in constant danger._

"Was something on your mind, Miss Roses?"

"No, sir."

"Well, then, let me get down to it. These people and myself are interested in breaking away from the Republic. We don't like a majority of the decisions made recently, and our attempts to...subdue Senator Amidala from Naboo have failed. I don't blame you, Jango. I blame your associate, Zam; however, she and two jedi are now in custody.

"These three political prisoners are scheduled to be executed, though we doubt that just these three alone will prove how serious we really are. We feel it is advantageous to have small team of assassins. These contracts would only be done in self-defense."

 _This guy's a bozo!_

Aaron didn't say anything. If we asked who this Senator from Naboomboo was or what the heck "jedi" were, we would be revealed as phonies. But if we agreed to be full time murderers, we would be betraying our core values.

"Now, I assure you that compensation for your services would be substantial. Money, status, political favors...anything you can imagine would be at your fingertips."

"That is quite a tempting offer, sir," Aaron answered before taking his last bite of meat.

While Dooku had been talking, I had eaten most of the vegetables. I was enjoying them, but I always tended to eat my meals in order from least favorite to favorite. For breakfast, I ate my fruit first, then eggs, then meat, and finally the bread option (be it toast, bagel, doughnut, cinnamon roll, whatever). Dinner was always veggies first. Made the meat that much better.

"I assure you that it's an offer that we don't make lightly."

"We believe you. It's just that it's a huge decision. I mean, working for a man of your reputation and status, it isn't a choice to be made rashly," I explained gently while cutting up my meat into individual bites.

Aaron sniffed his vegetables and almost made a face.

 _Watch your step, buddy. We may be on thin ice._

I pretended to take another small sip of wine to try and appease Dooku.

"I suppose it is. I can give you until just after the execution to decide, but it is the best I can offer. I assure you that if you decline this offer will never come your way again, but you will be able to leave here unharmed. You agreed to come here on good faith and we intend to let you leave the same way."

"Sounds reasonable. I just have one question about if we were to accept this offer," Aaron said.

"What is it?"

"Would we have our own assigned base or would we be here?"

"We would give you an assigned base but with a few locations of safe houses should the homebase be compromised."

"I see," Aaron answered.

I thought it was kind of weird that Dooku was doing all the talking, but he was also sitting at the head of the table, and that must have been significant here, too, as it was at home.

After a beat, Wat Tambor said something, in a hushed tone, to Count Dooku. While they whispered something about "Techno Union Ships," I was able to eat a few bites of the seared meat. It had the texture of steak and a little of steak flavor, but it was on the gamey side. Not that I would complain.

"Wat Tambor says that should you join us, he would provide you with a Techno Union Ship and two personalized fighters."

"We don't have pilot licenses," I said.

"Well, you wouldn't need them. There a few training simulators that we could run for you. If you can't fly, how do you make it to your hits?"

"Public transportation," Aaron answered.

"Public transportation?" Dooku asked.

"Yes. We have some experiences with disguises and we are discreet."

The look Aaron gave me read "Halloween 2012."

 _I don't think Halloween costumes really count…_

The Count seemed to consider this, and I was able to finish off my meat.

"Well, if you two are done with dinner, I hope you wouldn't mind dismissing yourselves and going back to your rooms. If you like the wine, you may take the glass with you, Roses. Just leave it on your dresser, and one of the Geonosians will collect it from your room."

I stood and Aaron stood. I took the glass and we left side by side. The hall was lined with nice plants, so I had a choice of which one to dump the of the glass.

"Please try to stay out of the dungeons. I will not strictly forbid it, but I would prefer you kept your exploring to a minimum. Besides, you have a big day tomorrow."

 _Stay out of my shed._

We both nodded our understanding, but now that we knew about the dungeon…

Once we were out of the sight of the table and accepted the fact that we weren't under any sort of guard, I dumped the wine into the nearest plant.

"So, it is not forbidden to explore," Aaron chuckled smiled mischievously.

"And there's a dungeon," I replied, as visions of those depicted in medieval themed literature and media ran through my head.

And of course, we found it. There were shiny, silver candelabras on either side of the staircase, and we each grabbed one. I still held the glass. The stairs were gradual enough no handrail was necessary.

We stayed side by side during the decent, but at the bottom of the stairs was a split. There were two lit cells to the left, and one lit cell to the right.

I wanted to stick together.

Aaron wanted to split up.

Aaron had hidden his "lucky" half dollar in his boot.

He flipped it.

I called tails.

It was heads.

So we split up.

I watched Aaron go a piece left before I started to the right.

Because the floor was sand, I was making tracks, and even though it wasn't forbidden to be here, it still felt dishonest.

It turned out that the lighted cell was a bit farther than I had anticipated, but the payoff was certainly interesting.

The cell was circular and midway up the wall were lights. In the center of the room, on the ceiling, appeared to be a generator projecting a cylinder of light downward toward the floor, and there was a base generator on the floor projecting a beam of light upward. A man was suspended in the cylinder and was slowly rotating.

Once he was facing the door he called out to me.

"Who are you?"

END CHAPTER TEN


	11. Chapter 11

Ch. 11 To the Left

Aaron: My path lead to another set if stairs. I walked down not knowing what to expect. It wasn't very many. It was a long hallway with heavy duty doors that had compartments. Most likely for prisoners to get food.

 _Looks like they aren't messing around. This is one big hallway._

I walked into the hallway a couple of feet before I was stopped by a high pitched synthetic voice behind me.

"Halt!"

I stopped and turned around to see the source. It was a droid, but it was different than the one I dispatched on Tatooine.

"May I help you?"

 _He looks like some sort of bug._

"Do you have permission to be on this level? This floor is off limits to visitors."

"Uhhhh...kinda."

"Please clarify your response."

 _Ok, I need to be firm about this. Just use half truths._

Firmly, I said, "I have permission from Count Dooku that I was allowed to come down here."

"Very well, carry on."

 _Thank goodness._

"Roger, Roger."

With that I turned back and headed down the hall. I noticed a door different than the others. It had some sort of light around the front of it, but, my attention was taken away from the door.

I heard something.

 _Is that crying?_

I stopped at the door to listen a moment. The crying belonged to that of a young girl or woman. I opened a slot on the door to look inside.

It was a dark open room with little lighting. Across the room, on the farthest side wall, was a simple cot. On it was a woman with white garments on and her back turned away from the door. She was crying in what looked like the fetal position. It was obvious she was upset. She was in a dungeon after all.

I asked anyway, "Are you alright?"

She sat up rather quickly and turned to me, startled. Her shock turned to a look of determination.

"I will tell you what I told the last interrogator: I will not break. The Republic and its people are worth more than my life. I would gladly give up my life for it."

I guess a political prisoner would assume I was an interrogator.

"Actually, I'm just a guest here. I'm not affiliated with them, except that my pilot has business here. After he is done, I will most likely be on my way."

Her expression changed back to shock, "You can't just be a guest. You must have some reason to be here with these murderous traitors."

"Traitors to who?"

"The Republic you're a part of."

"I'm not with the Republic."

"Are you from a planet in the Outer Rim?

 _I feel like I can trust her. A lot more than Count "Dracula" upstairs, anyway. It wouldn't hurt to tell her something…_

I sighed before continuing.

"I'm not even from your galaxy."

Her eyes went wide, "You're not?"

"No, and I'm not even sure the same universe. If I am, my home is far away."

 _Far far away. That has a nice ring to it._

"Then how did you get here?"

"We have no Idea."

She was puzzled, "We?"

 _I guess it wouldn't hurt to tell her about Jo._

"My sister is here too, we had others with us. But, we don't know where they are. They could be back home for all we know. She is taking the whole 'Might not see my family again' thing harder than I am. She's really not cut out for action like me. Her day job is a glorified receptionist. Not really her field of expertise doing what she has had to do since being here."

She giggled at that. Crying didn't suit her. Her smile was gorgeous, and even in this cold dungeon, I felt warm.

"My sister is the same way, though, only about the action part," the woman said. "She would not be alright in my shoes right now."

"Ya, I'm the complete opposite to her. I could never live my life at a desk my whole life."

"Same here, I try to be a good person helping out whenever I can, a lot of the people I work with like to work at a desk all day. Sometimes that's what I have to do. But, if something requires immediate action, I get up to go out and help help."

This got me curious, "What exactly do you do?"

She smiled, "Right, you don't know. I'm a senator for the Republic. I represent the planet of Naboo in hopes to make a peaceful galaxy."

Her expression turned sad, "But now that I'm here, and those traitors upstairs are making an army to conquer it, I don't know what to do. I don't even know what has happened to my body guard."

I turned to look at the other doors.

 _I'm guessing he is in the one with the light coming from it._

"I can take a look if you want. I probably won't get in trouble for talking to him."

"You would?"

"Yeah, he's right down the hall." 

I start walking towards the room when she stops me, "Don't get in trouble for my sake. It's not worth it."

"Nah, I said don't worry about it. I'll be back soon."

I walk to the door and see that the light was surrounding the entryway. It was then when I realized there was no door. It was a force field only.

 _Got to love technology…_

I put the back of my hand to the field to see if it was hot.

It was warm, not hot.

Looking in side, I see a man in a cross leg position with a collar around his neck. His head was down and looked to be resting. I decided to knock.

"Hello, are you alright?"

If he heard me, he was doing a good job of ignoring me. I waited a moment before asking again.

"The woman few cells down wanted me to check up on you."

His eyes shot open and sparks flew from the collar. He growled in pain, but them smiled.

I gasped in shock that someone could recover so quickly

"Are you alright!?"

The guy in front of me took a few breaths before responding.

"Dooku has this collar placed around me to stop me from using the Force. I was worried something bad happened to Padmé, so I used the force for a moment to sense the area around me. I learned two things, one, you're not on Dooku's side- yet. Padmé is alright. That's good, I was worried for her."

He was smiling with his eyes closed.

He liked her.

It was written all over his face.

"Ya, your girlfriend was worried about you."

His face contorted to anger at the word girlfriend.

"She is NOT my girlfriend. I would be kicked out of the order if she was."

 _I didn't expect a response like this. I need to defuse the situation._

"Sorry, I kind of assumed she was, I really meant nothing by it."

He seemed to calm down at this.

 _I needed to be careful what I say and ask._

"What did you mean by using the force earlier, and what is this "Order" you speak of? It sounds hard if you can't have a girlfriend."

He stood up straight at that. "What do you mean you don't… well the Force is what keeps this galaxy together. It's a field that connects all life in the galaxy. The Order I was talking about is the Jedi Order. We specialize in using it to our advantage. I thought everyone knows about the Jedi."

"Well, I'm not really from your Galaxy…"

His eyes went wide, "What?"

"I can explain…

…

I told the man in front of me the situation my sister and I found ourselves in. I told him that we woke up on Tatooine in the middle of the desert. He interrupted a few times asking stuff like how we got out of the desert and how we got here. I didn't feel like telling the names of some people, as it would not be smart telling a stranger names of farmers and that we got a ride from some bounty hunters. I also left out the action as it was not important, and because it would take longer to explain. By time I finished, he could understand the situation: I was not here by choice.

I asked him how they ended up here, and the man said that he and his master were working on a case of an assassination attempt on Padmé's life. The assassin used extreme means to do so, ranging from blowing up a ship on a densely populated planet, to poisoning her in her sleep.

They caught the assailant setting up the attacks, but not the mastermind. He killed his partner before she could reveal his identity. They had to split up to solve this case, and he was stuck guarding Padmé. While he was guarding Padmé, they got a transmission showing his master in trouble and came to help, as they were the closest help available. I could guess that it didn't work.

"... and that's how we ended up in this dungeon."

"Wow. I can't say that I could do the things you could do in your story. But I guess that using this Force is what allowed you to make it as far as you did. If there is some way I can help you I would try to figure it out, but I wouldn't know where to begin."

"You shouldn't, it's not worth it. Save yourself from this situation. The best thing you can do is get far away from this planet, and try to get to your home galaxy."

"I have to wait for my ride to finish his business here… he said he would be done with his work here after tomorrow."

He looked down closing his eyes "Then you are doomed…"

The tone he used for that sent chills down my spine.

 _He thinks we will join Dooku._

"I know you think that my sister and I are like any other person in your galaxy, but you know what, you're right. I have desires, I have needs, I laugh, and I cry. I can be led from the path of doing good like anyone else. And I have fallen off of it time and time again. But, I get back up from it. But if you think that my sister and I can be bought from good with money or wealth, you're wrong."

The man looks up to me at this.

"We follow a belief that frowns upon actions like that. People being bought, letting evil reign. Our God would not like that. We do our best to serve Him in life. He gave us life so we can live by Him. Joining Dooku because he pays us a large sum of money while he destroys lives is not something God would want us to do. If we were to join him, it would not be for the promise of power or how much we could get. It would be because it was right. Can you tell me that what those men upstairs are doing is right? They claim that the Republic is corrupt, when they are owners of mega corporations. They aren't doing this for charity. If they wanted corruption gone, they would not need to do it this way. It would need to be done by the people, for the people. Not 'How much can I make from this?', and they know it. That's why they're doing it this way."

He seemed to think about what I just said but I continued anyway.

"Sorry for going off like that, but back home, we have a lot of politicians and corporations that would trade the lives of anyone. If it meant they could make a quick buck, or if there lives were in danger."

"I know what you mean, but what's a quick buck?"

"I guess in your case, it would be a quick cred."

He started laughing at this and stopped when the collar around him shocked him.

"I guess I broke my concentration. It's really hard not using the Force."

"Well, I guess I could never know that, I don't have the Force you speak of."

His face was confused at that last part.

 _I have been here long enough, people might be looking for me and my sister anytime now._

"I'm sorry, but I have to go, or someone might get suspicious."

"Right, well, I might ever see you again…"

"Hey, don't say that, you don't know what will happen. For all you know, your Repubic might send the cavalry to save you."

He shook his head.

"No, the Republic has no army anymore. The most they have is the Jedi Order, this would be to much for them to handle. It's suicide."

"Why doesn't the Republic have an army, that sounds pretty stupid if you as me."

"We have a draft in case an army is needed, but they wouldn't be able to amass a big enough force to take them down."

"Well, they don't need an army to rescue you. They would just need a small force to get in and get out."

He seemed to think about what I said before responding, "I guess so, but they wouldn't do that for two Jedi and a senator. To much of a risk."

"It would be too much of a risk not too."

"What?"

"Your Republic is pretty much the main power of the Galaxy, right?"

He shook his head yes.

"Well how would it look if the leading power in the Galaxy did nothing to help a senator from a well known world? It would be a big sign of weakness. And how would your Jedi look if they did nothing to save their own."

He seemed to finally get what I was telling him. "I never thought of it that way. But it's still suicide. A small force would not be able to get away. When we set the transmission, we were told to stay put. But we didn't listen. I knew there was going to be an army here, but not on this scale. I'm sorry we can do nothing to help you get home. But, if you can get to the Jedi temple on Coruscant, I'm sure they will help you. I know they will."

 _That's totally not ominous._

"Right, well if I do go there, I would need to know the name of the person who recommended it to me if they ask for it."

"OH, right, I'm Anakin, Anakin Skywalker. What's yours?"

"I don't know if I should say just yet. Dooku might try to see if I talked with you and try to interrogate you more."

He sighed.

"Fair enough, but what should I call you? I need something to call you."

I thought about before telling him, "Call me Spider-Man."

"Spider-Man?"

"Spider-Man."

"….. Alright, I guess that's good enough."

That was my cue to leave. I was halfway to Padmé's door when I thought I heard Anakin say something,

" _The Force_ _is_ _with you…"_

 _That's weird…_

I stopped at the door and knocked, "I'm back."

I opened the slot st see her sitting on her bed.

She looked anxious, "You have been gone for a while. Is he alright, did you get in trouble?!"

"No, I'm alright, and so is Anakin. He was just as worried about you as you are of him."

"Oh Good! I was so worried for him! I have known Ani since he was a little boy. I wouldn't want to know that the cute little boy I once knew got hurt for my sake."

I smiled, "Cute, Huh."

She gasped and put her hands to her mouth faster than you could say love. Her head turned the other way in embarrassment. I laughed mentally at her turmoil, "Well, I'll leave you to your thoughts."

I was about to leave, but she stopped me, "Wait, I don't even know your name!"

"Don't you know?"

She was confused, so I continued.

….

"I'm your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man."

…. "What?"

"*sigh* Nothing, sorry for that. I'll try to see you later."

"Alright."

I closed the hatch and started walking back down the hall to the set of stairs I came from. The guard was still there.

"Are you done with the prisoners yet."

"Ya, I'm done with them. Thank you for letting me see them."

"Oh… uh… you're welcome?"

 _He's acting like he had never been thanked before._

I started the climb up the stairs and started thinking.

 _An assassin working for Dooku, and they never caught him. If his initial target is here…_

All of a sudden, I didn't feel so good. I collapsed on the stairs in a trance like state. I started hearing conversations and other things the last couple of days as if it was happening now

" _I'm a Bounty Hunter. I get my job done however I can, no matter the cost..."_

 _Jango told me that when I when I first saw him when we took on the slavers!_

" _The assassin blew up a ship on a public landing pad. Killing all of the passengers on board..."_

 _That was Anakin talking! What's going on!?_

" _No matter the cost…"_

" _He even tried to kill Padme in her sleep when the Bomb didn't work. He had a partner for all of this. And when we caught her, the assassin behind all of it just killed her in cold blood."_

" _My client is a Man named Dooku…"_

 _Wait…_

" _Know I know that the assassin was hired by Dooku…"_

 _Oh no… NO…. It can't be… but… it makes sense. I need to know, I need to hear it from him._

I finally came back to the real world, and I notice that I was on the stairs with my body held up by my arms. With a new mission, I got up from my spot with one thought.

 _I need to get Jo..._

Chapter End

(A/N: Hope you liked the Chapter, everyone have a good week).


	12. Chapter 12

WPRT CH. 12

 _To the Right_

Jo:

I wasn't quite sure what to say to him. There was something about him that I knew "Roses" wouldn't satisfy.

"I'm Joanne Shepherd," I whispered.

"What?"

"I'm Batman," I answered louder while putting a gravel in my voice.

I made no immediate query as I watched him make another rotation in the cylinder of light.

"Who are you?" I asked him back.

"I'm Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"Why are you here? In the dungeon?"

"Why are you here in those clothes asking? Dressed like that, I assume you are one of Dooku's guests and or fellow Separatist."

"What exactly is that, anyway? I mean, I guess I picked up from the dinner conversation that there is some sort of Republic they oppose, but I don't know what it is."

"How can you not know? Who are you?"

"Look, my brother and I were picked up by Jango Fett-."

"Jango Fett is who I followed to get here. He's dangerous."

"We saved him and his son. He gave us a ride here from Tatooine."

"Everything goes back to Tatooine," Obi-Wan muttered.

"'Everything goes back to Tatooine?'"

"To be honest, my life was much simpler before that dust-bowl got involved."

"Okay, Bitter Betty, I did not ask to come here. I was happy in Indiana working as a glorified receptionist. I was happy playing _Minecraft_ and _Fallout_ on the weekends, going to church on Sunday and Wednesday, and heck, I was even happy in my degree program. But then my brother was all like, 'We should go on a camping trip,' and I was like, 'Nah, I'm good,' and then his friend Eugene was all like, 'Come on, JJ, it'll be fun,' and Thomas was like 'Yeah, what's the worst that could happen? Get a few mosquito bites?' and I was all like, 'I like a toilet, ya know, not going in the woods like animals?' and my brother said, 'You're such a wimp, and I was all, 'Fine, I'll go.' Now my brother and I are trapped here with no way to contact home, and I want my mommy."

"You're name is JJ?"

"No. That's what Eugene calls me, because it gets my goat."

"Your goat?"

"It's an expression I don't really have a goat."

"What's a goat?"

"Okay, let's back up. Why were you following Jango Fett?"

"How did you end up on Tatooine. I've been suspended like this for two days, and if you aren't going to be honest and straightforward, then at least tell me a good story."

"Fine, I'll tell you the whole story."

XxXx

He listened to the whole story, and seemed intrigued when I dropped the name "Anakin" being the Lars' step-brother/step-son. He acted like he knew this here Anakin guy, and seemed sad when I explained that Anakin had just seen his mother for a moment before she died.

"...and then my brother and I decided to check out the dungeon anyway, because we could. Then, we flipped a coin and decided to split up. And then I met you."

"So you really have no idea what's going on here?"

"Not a clue."

"I see…"

"And I'm hesitant to get your side of the politics right now, because I don't want my brother or I to be in prison."

"I suppose that's understandable. But, it seems to me that you have a big enough heart to not want to see children killed, especially in front of their parents. Do you like children?"

"I do, though I can only take littles in small groups. For short amounts of time. I prefer they can read."

"I understand. It also helps to have a knack for teaching. Sometimes, I think I wasn't cut out for it."

My eyes went wide.

"You teach?"

"Well, I have an apprentice. He's probably around your age right now. We picked him up on Tatooine about ten years ago, and I promised my master I would train him...my master used his final breath to beg me to train him."

"That's horrible. I'm sorry for your loss."

"Time has eased his passing, but there are days where it hurts."

"I understand. I have lost people, too. My grandmother died last year."

"I'm sorry about your grandmother."

"Thank you. Does your family know you are here?"

"No, I don't think so. You see, I was taken as a very young child to be trained by the Jedi, and I have only seen them once since. It's probably better that way."

"What are the Jedi?"

"The Jedi are guardians of the Republic."

"I see. So, you were taken as a young child to be trained to be a guardian. This sounds like it should be a high honor."

"Yes, it is. You see, very few are chosen. One must have a strong connection to the Force. But sometimes, it is difficult. Sometimes, the rules are difficult to follow and adhere to. Especially attachment. It has been a struggle for me and my apprentice sometimes."

"'Attachment?' What's that mean?"

"Well, they mean against loving people more than the Jedi. Marriage and relationships are forbidden. For example, I have had two women that I grew to love and care for very much. I had to give them both up for the Jedi, though. And it was hard, but worth it. One cannot always serve with a clear mind when their loyalties are divided. Had Siri or Satine been in danger at the same time my service was direly needed, I can't say I would have stood with the Jedi as my duty would have dictated."

"I'm sorry. That's got to be hard. I've never thought of it like that. I've never known people so devoted to something other than priests and nuns back home."

"Your priests are celibate? What are nuns?"

"Well, priests of the Catholic faith. They are supposed to be celibate. Nuns are also of the Catholic faith, usually, and are called 'Brides of Christ.' They are similar to the priests. I myself am not a Catholic, but I am a Christian."

"'Christian?'"

"A follower of Jesus Christ. We are getting too far off topic though, right now. Is there a war or something?"

"Not yet. It's brewing. And much closer than any of us feared."

"I still don't want to know the politics as of yet; but I also don't want tomorrow to happen. I have got the feeling that you're one of the three slated for execution. I suspect that these have been ordered without a fair trial."

"Three?"

"Yes. He said they had three political prisoners."

"Lovely."

"Anyway, I am going to talk to my brother and see where we are. I wish I knew more form my own opinions on these matters. I don't want you to die. You seem like a nice guy who just got mixed up in something you didn't want to be mixed up in."

"It's worse. Dooku offered me a way out. You see, he was my master's master. He offered me a chance to join him and the Separatists, but I refused."

I heard Aaron hissing at me from down the hall.

I held the candelabra high as I walked away from the cell.

"Batman?"

I smiled and I looked back.

"Yes, Obi-Wan?"

"I hope you guys find a way to help us."

"Me, too.

XxXx

I met Aaron at the bottom of the stairs. He looked mildly disturbed by something.

"Who did you find?" I asked.

"Let's wait until we get back upstairs," he answered, a slight quiver to his voice.

"Okay."

END CHAPTER TWELVE


	13. Chapter 13

WPRT Ch. 13

A Not So Secret, Secret

Aaron:

We made it back to the top of the set of stairs. We kept quiet going up, and I wondered how she would take the news.

"So what's going on?"

I sighed.

"I'm fine. But what do you think of Jango?"

She blushed and turned away. I'm pretty sure she was smiling.

"Oh, well, he seems to be good person. Maybe not entirely legit, but nice..."

 _Oh no, she has a crush on him. What a cliché. Well, you know what they say about crushes…_

"I don't think so. Do we really know what his job is here?"

She turned back to me with a furrowed brow.

"What do you mean?"

"He said he had a job to finish, and he is a bounty hunter. What would a political figure need a bounty hunter for?"

"Uhhhh…."

"When I was downstairs, I talked with the senator that was mentioned at the party and her bodyguard. The guard said he and his friend were part of an investigation on an assassination attempt. The senator was the target, obviously. But, he just told me that the assassin blew up a ship. Everyone on that ship died. He thought the senator was on it."

"Ok?"

 _She's still not getting it._

"The assassin tried again by poisoning her in her sleep. The bodyguards caught the assassin. But, it turns out the assassin was paid by the real one to do the dirty work. The real one killed his partner after she had failed and was captured. The assassin's trail led here, the real assassin was hired by Dooku."

"But that could be anyone at that party, it doesn't mean anything."

"No, it could have only been one person. Everyone else there was an owner of a company. Not really assassin material. Jango was right beside Dooku, mostly likely for another job."

Jo seemed to think for a moment.

Then she had the epiphany.

"Then Jango-."

"Yes, Jo, he is that assassin."

She didn't handle the news well. She was on the verge of tears.

"But, what do we do?"

"We are going to ask him. If he says he is, we''ll just get off on the next planet. Honestly, I think we should get out either way. But we will hope to not get involved with him again. I can understand someone being an assassin. But, to go to those lengths, blowing up public places, not even having the guts to look at your target when you kill them, and even killing his own partner. Who ever the assassin is, he is Nothing but a coward."

"Tell me…"

Both Jo and I had our attentions turned to the source of the new voice. We were shocked to see that Jango was there. Just a few feet away.

He walked forward until he was a few inches in front of me.

"Tell me to my face that I am a coward, that I am no warrior."

I could tell he was angry, but I wasn't going to be intimidated.

I made eye-contact with him, putting a glint in my eye.

"You are a coward. If you think after doing what you did makes you a warrior...You. Are. Wrong."

His anger mounted when I said that. I think he expected me to back down. Jango was going to say something else, but I didn't let him.

"You're starting a war, that will cause the suffering of millions, if not, billions. You used a bomb in a public area, killing those passengers, and the target wasn't even there."

Jango was quickly moving from angry to livid, but I couldn't stop.

"You even killed your partner just to cover your tracks. Gee, how well did that work."

 _One more thing and he will snap._

"You don't even believe in their cause…"

To my surprise, Jango changed from anger to shock.

"You couldn't care less for the people at that party. You just want the money. What good is it if your wanted poster is everywhere for starting a war?"

He seemed to think at that.

"How would Boba feel if you died? You won't survive this. And he'll be left all alone. You traded your duty in supporting and raising your son for money. When you're gone, whose money will it be? Dooku won't pay you if you're dead."

Jango was angry and looked lost…

 _One more nail in the coffin._

"The saddest part of it all, is that you didn't even see your target. You never did any of the work. Again, you just hired someone else, and you killed her instead. On my world, there was a war that changed the face of warfare. At the time, it was known as the Great War. It was started when an assassin group known as the Black Hand assassinated Archduke Franz Ferdinand of the Austria-Hungary Empire. The difference between you and them, is they believed in their cause. You don't."

At this Jo put her hand on my shoulder, wanting me to stop. My attention was taken from Jango and I saw an upset Jo. I guess this scared her a bit. Seeing me angry.

"You're right…"

Jo and I looked back at Jango, shocked by this statement.

"I am a Mandalorian warrior who was taught to work for honor, and to keep are traditions alive by teaching my son. I taught him a lot as a father, but now that I realize what this would do to him. I now know I have made a terrible mistake. It's Ironic. If I didn't take this job, Boba wouldn't exist."

Jo asked before I could, "What do you mean?"

"The initial payment for my services for Dooku was that I would have a genetically perfect clone. He is the son I never had. I never had time to settle down to make a family. I thought it would be simple. How far I have fallen."

Jango started to walk away, but I grabbed him by the shoulder.

"I guess you had good intentions. You got Boba out of it, and doing other jobs for Dooku got you money to support Boba. But what your son really wants more than the best in life, is his father to be there."

I removed my hand.

"You need to quit working for Dooku. You can do anything, but don't work for them. Not if you want to be there for Boba."

"You're right. What was I thinking? I just felt like I had no choice. I thought things would work out. Something was telling me to work for him. But, ever since I meet you two, that feeling started leaving me. Hearing about your struggles here reminded me of a time I forgot about. The family I had."

He looked down.

"If something happens to me… promise me you will look after Boba."

"Well of course we-"

"What, you would just dump your son on us like that!"

That was not a reaction I expected from Jo.

"Take it easy Jo, he just wants to know his son will be alright if something happens. That's not wrong, is it?"

"What? No! It's just…"

She seemed like she did not know what to say, "Uuuugh!"

With that, she marched away.

 _Women…_

"Is she going to be alright?"

"Ya, this happens with her every now and then. You could say she has a bit of a hair trigger when it comes to emotions."

"It seems that way."

"Well don't worry about it. She will be over it by morning. You know how older sisters are."

"Yeah…"

I didn't like the tone in Jango's voice. I must have brought up a touchy subject.

We started walking the same direction the Emotional demon went, and decided to ask him something.

"What are Mandalorians?"

"What?"

"You said your a Mandalorian warrior. So what is that? Some hardcore army division?"

He smirked, "Something like that."

We moved to the right for a Geonosian guard walk past us.

"The Mandalorians are people from the planet of Mandalore. In the past, the Mandalorian people were known to be Great crusaders and warriors. Something people feared to face. And you don't even need to be from Mandalore to be a Mandalorian. Some have never even seen it."

 _That's interesting._

"Really?"

"Yes. Those that follow the code of the Mandalorians are not bound by race or origins. The only requirement is that they follow the code and pledge themselves to Mandalore."

"So what are the codes?"

Jango said it was called the Super Commando Codex, and he went into full detail about it.

"Strength is life, for the strong have the right to rule.  
Honor is life, for with no honor one may as well be dead.  
Loyalty is life, for without one's clan one has no purpose.  
Death is life, one should die as they have lived."

"That makes sence, you need to be strong to make the right decisions in leadership."

He smiled at that.

"Good to know that young people still get that."

"Our world has had good leaders, but we have had more bad than good. But, the Bad ones are good for us to learn from their mistakes."

He nodded his head in approval.

"Is there more to your code?"

There was, he told me the rest of it. And it came down to six requirements.

You need to wear armor.  
Speak our language.  
Defend yourself and your family.  
Raise your kids to be Mandalorians.  
Contribute to the welfare of your clan.  
If the Mand'alor calls, you go.

Some of the stuff Jango told me was not that different from Christianity. He went into detail about other traditions they have. How Mandos make their own armor, and that they have a rite of passage.

"Rite of passage?"

"We call it Verd'goten."

"Verd'goten?"

"Yes. When a child reaches the age of 8, they begin their training until the age of 13. Then they need to make their first kill, whether it's man or beast. The target is up for the trainer to decide. All that matters is that the target is a challenge."

"That sounds awesome, I assume that if it's a human target, it's someone who is wanted?"

"You guessed right. We don't choose a random person. Most people are shocked by that idea."

"Would you believe me if I told you that a group from our world had a worse initiation for warriors?"

"Really, like what?"

"Well, long ago, there was a group of people called the Spartans. They lived a gruesome life. When a child was born among them, they killed the baby if it had a defect, or blemish. Then, if the child was lucky to survive that, they would go through intense training. They would be taken from their families at the age of 7."

Jango's face showed anger at that, "That sounds like something Death Watch would do."

"Death Watch?"

"They are a clan of false warriors that oppose the true Mandalorian way. They're a group of nothing but pirates and claim they have honor, but they have none. They have given up the true path."

As soon as he finished, we had made it to the door of my room. I pressed the button to open the door, and entered.

 _Just as I left it._

I turned around to see that Jango was waiting outside my door.

"You can come in if you want, I would like to hear more about the Mandalorians."

"Your sister may not like that, considering she is right next door."

"Naaaa, she can suck it up. She's most likely too distracted to care."

Jango was going to say something, but Boba showed up in the doorway and asked, "Is something wrong with Jo? She looked upset a few minutes ago when I saw her."

Jango looked nervous, so I answered Boba for him, "Oh, she's just having an episode. Just taking the whole other galaxy thing harder than I am. Still."

He seemed to buy that response, and Jango looked relieved.

I changed the subject.

"So Jango, Boba told me you could teach me a card game from your galaxy, called sabacc?"

He chuckled, "Yes, I can teach you. We have plenty of time."

He motioned for me to follow him as he headed to the small round table. Boba and I followed. He pulled out 3 decks of cards with different colors, numbers, pluses and minuses. He let me use the spare deck and gave me the rundown. I was surprised how similar it was to blackjack. Except for the individual decks. That reminded me of something like Pokémon, or Yu-Gi-Oh. We played a few games. I won a couple if them in the end.

"Well, we have had a long day Boba, I think it's time we go to bed."

Boba was disappointed in hearing that, "Yes dad."

As Boba got up from his chair to leave. Jango gave him a couple of pats on his back. "Well, we'll see you two at the ceremony tomorrow. Afterwards, we will head out of here. I don't have any other jobs at the moment. So we will have to decide a destination to drop you both off."

"Sounds good. Are we allowed to wear are equipment for this?"

"Yes, I would greatly recommended that you wear every thing. In fact, bring everything you own. I would like to leave as soon as possible. You weapons too."

"Alright. I'll make sure to tell Jo in the morning."

"Good, make sure to watch yourself tomorrow."

Boba and Jango walked towards the door to leave. After Boba left the room, Jango told me something, "You know, if this was a different time. You would have made a good Mando. Thank you again for setting me straight. It was like as if a shroud had blinded me."

"It was nothing Jango. We all have moments in life like that. We lose ourselves. I have had that happen in my life time and time again. But do you know how I get myself back on track?"

He shakes his head no.

"I remember a Higher Power that I serve, and what He has done for me."

He thought about it for a few moments, and said. "I think I understand that a little bit."

He smiled as he left the room.

I smiled too.

 _I hope he will._

With that, I decided to use my phone to listen to a song before I went to bed. I chose to listen to 'Stand by Me'. (It's a very motivational song I like to listen to).

After the song was over. I turned off my phone and closed my eyes.

 _I hope Jo is ok._

And for the first time, since being in this galaxy. I had no trouble with sleep.

End Chapter


	14. Chapter 14

WPRT 14

 _Panem et Circenses_

Jo:

I woke up to unsettling silence. The bed was so comfortable, though, I briefly forgot where I was. I cleared my throat loudly to try to start the fan in the bathroom. It is on a sensor back home. It didn't work, and I stood up.

I winced at the cold floor.

 _Why is the floor so cold. Did I spill water on my carpet last night?_

I forced by eyes open, and remembered all at once that we weren't at home. We were in the Spire on Geonosis. We were brought here by Jango Fett, who I thought was someone we could trust.

 _I can't believe I had a crush on a mass murderer._

 _I can't believe that I honestly talked myself into liking him._

 _I can't believe that he had the gall to ask us to watch after Boba, like we know the first thing about raising kids...has he not figured out we are adults in name only?!_

I put on my glasses and stretched.

As I started getting dressed, I noticed two pieces of paper on the desk that weren't there the night before.

 _That's not unsettling._

One was in the format of a letter, and another was in the format of a notice.

Unfortunately, they weren't in English.

 _How helpful._

Aaron appeared in the doorway of the fresher.

"Jango wants to leave just after the executions. He suggested you wear the armor and bring everything with you."

"Should I bring the dress from Dooku?"

"Maybe if it will fit in your pack. Get dressed."

It did.

I put on my last outfit that was clean- excluding church clothes. I put on black leggings and an asymmetrical grey tunic. Then, I put my hair in a trusty french braid. Whether or not it looked good, I have no idea. Once I was satisfied, I pulled on my boots. It looked somewhat silly, but functionality was key.

I realized I had three weapons and only two hands.

I made Eugene's shotgun fit in my pack. The seams were pulled. Nothing else could possibly fit.

I slung on the pack.

 _Gawsh, this is heavy._

Next, I slid on the black shoulder piece and then put on the gauntlet.

Lastly, I put on the ear piece and hung my sunglasses on my collar.

I carried the Raider's rifle in my right hand, and the new one from Jango in my left.

Realizing, I had forgotten about the papers, I put the guns back down, folded the papers, and put them inside my bra. I prayed that my perspiration wouldn't blur the words. I needed to know what they said.

I opened the door and entered the hallway.

Aaron was leaning against the stone wall across from the door, wearing khaki cargo pants and a navy blue t-shirt. He had on the opposite gauntlet and ear piece. He also had on a belt and wore his sunglasses perched on his head like our uncle did sometimes.

I almost laughed at his outfit. He was wearing the colors of a Meijer work uniform.

"What?"

"I think you mean 'Welcome to Meijer.'"

"Shut up."

"Are you two ready for breakfast?" Jango asked as he approached us, Boba at his heels. He was wearing a loose tan shirt and tan pants. He was wearing soft shoes.

Boba wore the same blue shirt and pants he was wearing the day before.

"Yes, we are," I said, fighting the edge in my voice.

"Good."

"Jo, about last night…"

"Forget it. I kind of understand. Though, why you think Boba would be safe with a twenty-three and twenty-five year old looking out for him, I'll never know."

"You guys are only twenty-three and twenty-five?"

"Yes?" I said.

"I didn't...I mean...I'm not sure if you're older than I thought or younger than I thought."

"Ah. Well, people usually think I'm thirty if that makes you feel better," I said flatly.

"Uhhhh…." Jango said.

"It's fine. Look, I understand you want Boba to be cared for, and we will do our best. Okay? It just scared me a little bit."

"I understand, but we should get going. The Count likes his people to be punctual."

"Right…"

We all walked a piece toward the banquet hall, and I suddenly remembered the papers.

"Boba, hold this. Jango, what do these say?" I said as I handed the long rifle to Boba and fished out the folded papers from my bra.

With a slight blush, Jango unfolded the papers and look them over.

"The notice is just reminding you about the scheduled festivities this afternoon. The second one is kind of personal, and it's from me. I don't want to talk about it right now."

"Okay."

"If we make it through this afternoon, I'll tell you."

"Okay, Jango."

"Now, let's get breakfast! Count Dooku is waiting."

Boba came and took my hand, which I thought was kind of odd, considering that back on the ship he was so standoffish and rude.

I gave him a funny look.

"Dad told me last night that you and Aaron are my godparents."

"Ah. Well, kinda. And once we get to the dining hall, Aaron is Guns and I'm Roses. Those are the names we gave Dooku."

"I understand, Roses."

"Good."

The large wooden doors outside the dining hall were closed and a winged beast stood on each side.

"We are here for breakfast. I know we are a little late, but he wanted us to eat after the others had left to go freshen up for the executions," Jango said.

They opened the doors.

Dooku sat at the head of the table flipping through something that looked like a tablet.

"It's okay that your late. My mentor sent me this file to examine. Please help yourselves to the bounty of the table. Don't be shy. It is rather late for a meal."

Aaron and I said our thanks, silently prayed, and then tucked in as quickly as we dared. There was a coffee-like substance, a sweet roll of some kind, a small variety of fruits, and a meat that smelled like bacon. There were also eggs.

 _Something I know that I like. At least there is something here that's like home._

The eggs were fluffy and delicious, as well as the fruit. I ate some of the bread and and bacon thing as well.

"Jango, I need to speak with you before I go meet with Poggle," Dooku said.

 _I wonder what this is about…_

Jango stood and walked up to Dooku, where they talked in hushed tones.

Boba didn't seem concerned, though, and ate everything he put on his plate with a smile on his face and a song in his heart.

I sipped the coffee-like drink, and was pleased with the rich flavor. I noticed a little pitcher of cream, and put just a little in the cup. It improved the flavor and cooled it just enough.

I looked at Jango's mannerisms and how he was fidgeting uncomfortably and seemed distant as Dooku was talking. Dooku definitely noticed his odd behavior, and he did not look happy about it.

 _I think Jango just made it onto Dooku's bad side._

I didn't want to be caught staring at our host, and I turned my attention back to the food.

A winged beast appeared and handed Dooku a note. He snatched it from the beast rudely and read it quickly.

He immediately rose and said, "I will expect you on my personal pavilion for the executions. See you then."

He swept from the chamber, his cape billowing behind him.

Bossk walked in after Dooku left.

"Where's he going?" he asked.

"We don't know. Why are you late?"

"I don't know. I almost just skipped breakfast, but I decided that I should probably eat, considering I don't know when I will be able to eat next."

"Uh-huh," Jango said as he sat back down at his plate. I watched as he moved the eggs around listlessly, nibbled the bread, and took a few sips of the drink, but he was obviously no longer committed to his task at hand.

Too stubborn to ask, I just ignored the behavior.

XxXxXx

When we were done eating, Jango went back to his rooms to do one last sweep and put on his armor.

Bossk also left.

"We will be back in about an hour to get you to head for Dooku's pavilion. Stay here and don't make too much noise," Jango warned before he left the hall.

It was too quiet.

"How about we play a game?" I asked.

"What game?" Boba asked excitedly.

"Yes, dear sister, what game?"

"Well, not a real one, but…" I took off the shoulder guard and then took off my backpack. In a side compartment, I had hidden a very thin pouch that contained Q-tips, potential quotes for someday wedding vows, and dice. Not just any dice- D&D dice. I also happened to carry around three extra d-20's.

Aaron watched me and took off his own shoulder guard and pack.

We all stood, stretched, and walked to the long side of the hall. There was just enough space for all of us to stand three abreast.

I handed Boba the green die, Aaron the blue die, and I kept the black die.

"Whoever rolls the highest number wins," I said.

"There has to be stakes, or it isn't fun," Aaron said.

Boba nodded in agreement.

I thought for a second.

"Okay. Winner gets to pick the first 5 songs we play when we get our phones and music working again."

"And the losers?"

"Have to listen to Patrick saying 'Leedle leedle leedle leeeee' on repeat for four hours, followed by 'Taking the Hobbits to Isengard' for twelve."

The blank look on Boba's face reminded me that he had no idea what we were talking about.

"I don't think that's really a real consequence," Aaron said.

"Loser has to polish Jango's armor?"

"That's more like it," Boba said with a grin.

XxXxXx

We pitched dice across the hall. We were not quiet. We were not gentle. We pushed, shoved, and dove for our dice, securing our losses and victory. We all had to polish Jango's armor at least fifteen times apiece.

We were in the middle of a (mostly) friendly discussion about what constitutes as "cheating" when Jango came back standing in full armor. Behind him was Bossk in his flight suit.

"What's going on here?" he asked.

"We were just playing, Dad. With these dice. Nothing crazy," Boba said.

"We need to leave. The arena is on the other side. The ship is all loaded and everything. We will be ready for take-off when the time comes."

I collected the dice and put them back in the draw-string bag, and then put it back in the pouch.

 _Too bad we don't have the rules for Dungeons and Dragons. I think Boba would really enjoy that._

XxXxXx

After Aaron and I had re-donned our packs and armor (and re-burdened ourselves with our weapons), we followed Jango toward the arena. My heart was pounding in my ears.

 _I don't want to watch people die, but what can I do? What can_ we _do?_ Can _we do anything? There is something we haven't figured out about Dooku yet, and I wish I could put my finger on it._

We climbed several flights of stairs, and the weight of my pack was starting to get to me. But the stairs kept coming.

When we finally made it to the top, Dooku and Poggle the Lesser were smoothing out their clothes, preparing to make a grand entrance to the droves of Geonosians that had gathered in the stands. I heard them cheering wildly.

 _They must have brought the prisoners out…_

After another moment or two, Poggle the Lesser and Dooku stepped from the shadows into the incredible light of the sun. The crowds roared with pleasure. We all followed them out on the pavilion.

Obi-Wan was chained to a stone pillar, arms above his head. Two other people were chained to two more stone pillars in the same manner, though I caught a glint of something in the woman's teeth.

Through a series of clicks and grunting, Poggle the Lesser addressed the crowd. They were pleased with whatever he said, and three gates opened.

A dinosaur, a rat-cat, and a spider-crab were all coaxed into the arena.

Boba, who was standing between Aaron and I pointed to each creature and gave us names for each. The dinosaur was called a reek; the rat-cat was called a nexu; and the crab-spider was called an acklay.

The reek was easily provoked to charge at the man that was not Obi-Wan. The acklay, while not happy about being jabbed by pointy sticks, didn't fight back. The nexu was irritable, and turned on it's...handler?. It tore that guy off of its mount and killed it.

I looked down, and the men were talking.

I glanced at the woman, and I could see her picking her cuffs.

It took all of me not to point or laugh.

One wrist sprang free from the cuff, and commenced the climb to the top of the column she was chained to.

At that moment, the acklay engaged Obi-Wan, who dodged with expert precision.

The man in the middle was bracing himself for the reek, who was dragging his paw on the sand like bulls on Looney Toons in the matador segments. My heart jumped to my throat, but he jumped and landed on the reek's back. Reek was not happy with this arrangement.

The acklay managed to use his claw and break Obi-Wan's chain; however, his hands were still bound.

The woman was crouched on top of the column, intent on freeing her other wrist, and the nexu was trying to climb the column, determined to get her. Noticing the creature clawing its way up, she grabbed a long length of the chain and hit it in the face.

The nexu barely lost his grip.

It climbed back up and swiped her across the back, leaving deep gashes and tearing off a large section of her shirt...leaving her midriff bare. I heard her yelling, even as far away as we were.

I wanted to look away, but I was unable to do so.

Satisfied it had injured her, the nexu lept back down to the ground and circled viciously.

The chaos was mesmerizing.

Obi-Wan continued to dodge the acklay no matter how viciously or quickly it struck at him with its big meaty claws.

Boba looked down from the pavillion, and Jango looked on sullen.

Aaron and I looked at each other briefly, horrified at what we were seeing.

The man that wasn't Obi-Wan was riding around the arena, being chased by Geonosians mounted on something. They managed to dismount him and dragged by the chain he had wrapped around the reek's nose horn.

I looked back at the woman, only to see that the nexu was climbing back up.

In a stroke of genius, she held onto the chain and jumped; swinging around, she managed to deliver a kick, squarely on the nexu's torso. Whining, it fell to the sand. The woman scrambled back up the column as fast as she could.

The acklay knocked over the column, and it broke into three pieces.

The reek- now unprovoked- stopped running, giving the man that wasn't Obi-Wan a chance to stand up.

Obi-Wan grabbed a spear from a mounted Geonosian, flinging the creature over his head into the sand.

Spear in hand, Obi-Wan re-engaged the acklay.

The other man was trying to...calm the reek. The reek stopped being frightened and fidgety.

With a what can only be described as a Superman heighted leap, the other man managed to remount the reek. The reek didn't like that. At all. But while it was braying, he managed to throw his chain around the creature's head and into its mouth.

 _Reins!_

The nexu was once again up and circling the woman's column, while she continued desperately picking the remaining lock. She finally managed it just as the nexu was gearing up to scale the column once more; however, just before it leaped, the reek trampled it.

The woman jumped off the column and landed on the reek's back, just behind the man. I saw her kiss him on the cheek.

Obi-Wan was now closer matched with the acklay, but threw the spear into its shoulder joint.

Screaming, the aklay stopped briefly, but turned it's head and ripped out the spear.

Holding the spear between its teeth, the acklay crunched, and the spear snapped in two.

Resources exhausted, he ran.

Obi-Wan just managed to mount the reek as it ran next to him. The acklay was irritated. The nexu still lay motionless in the sand.

Shiny, round- I wasn't sure what they were- somethings rolled out onto the sand and then sprang to life.

Droids.

Shielded droids.

They surrounded the reek.

A loud buzz just to my left caught my attention. A purple stream of light was being held to Jango's throat. The light was being held by a handsome dark-skinned man. His teeth were white, but the look in his eyes was deadly. His robes were a soft brown.

Jango swallowed hard.

"Master Windu, how pleasant of you to join us," Dooku said, almost with a snide air.

The man's voice had a sharp edge.

"This party's over."

END CHAPTER FOURTEEN


	15. Chapter 15

WPRT Ch. 15

[ _Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars. If I did, I would be a billionaire_.]

Charge of Courage

Aaron:

 _Well this is an unexpected turn of events._

This execution was a complete flop for Dooku and his "friends". The prisoners they were going to kill broke free from their restraints, and killed one of the creatures. I was glad they did. I recognized two of them as the prisoners I met in the dungeon. I really wanted them to get away. But, with everyone at the arena, I figured it would be near impossible. That was, until a beam of light formed in front of Jango's neck.

Dooku called the man beside us "Master Windu". But the man was here for a Mission.

"This party's over."

At this, other people with the same weapon as Windu, made themselves known. It caused many Bugs in the audience to shriek in terror.

 _I hope this isn't the full rescue team. They're not planning to fight an army of Terminators with this number? Are they?_

Dooku waited a bit before smirking at Windu.

"Brave, but, foolish. You are greatly outnumbered."

"I don't think so."

 _Wait, maybe they don't know!_

If I wasn't worried, I was now.

"We shall see."

As soon as he stopped talking, the sound of metal reached all of our ears. It came down from the same tunnel that Windu came from.

The man retracted his blade from Jango's neck and took a stance with his blade against the oncoming force to kill him. All of us moved to the side to get out of the cross fire. And bolts of light streamed out towards the sword wielding man. I expected them to make direct contact with his chest, but I was surprised to see the man use the sword to reflect them back at the shooters. He was backing up every time a bolt hit his sword.

As this was happening, I noticed Jango putting on his helmet and activating a Flamethrower from a wrist mount. A steady stream of fire sprayed out, towards Windu. It seemed to work. But, the man leapt in the air.

Right over the edge of the balcony…

 _What?!_

Some of us on the pavilion, myself included, rush to the edge to see what had befallen the man.

He ditched his cloak, as it was the only thing in flames. He fell to the ground at high velocity.

 _He doesn't think he can land from this height?_

To my surprise, he did. Just before his feet hit the ground, Windu seemed to slow a bit. As he hit the ground, we all noticed droids pouring out of the entrances to the arena.

I couldn't tear my eyes away.

 _I knew they had an army of them. But, on this scale? Do they even stand a chance?_

My question went unanswered as we stared at the battlefield. At first, the fighting was here and there. Then moments later, it was one big mess across the colosseum. Blasters started firing all over the place. A lot of the droids started to fall down at first. But one by one, the droids would eventually eliminate them.

Just after the action began to wane,one of the alien sword fighters jumped up to where we were. Most likely trying to end the battle.

However, before the warrior could strike at any of us. A few shots from Jango's gun made quick work with him. As the creature toppled over the side of the balcony, it looked like Jango was going to do something else with his blaster, though, he seemed to hesitate. Dooku noticed this too, and gave Jango a look.

"Is there a problem?"

"No sir."

"Then go out there."

"Yes sir."

With that, he activated his jetpack, and entered the fray.

I knew that he had no choice. Otherwise, he would be killed for being a suspected traitor. Either way he could die, and he knew that, too.

As soon as Jango left, Jo leaned down to Boba's level, "Find a place for cover. This is could escalate any minute."

Begrudgingly, he nodded his head in compliance, and went off to find some cover.

We stared at the battlefield. For now, it was at a stalemate. Droid parts littered the arena floor, but the droids kept coming.

 _Even the sword wielding fighters will tire out before they come close to defeating them._

I noticed one of the prisoners on some sort of mount the Bugs had. She seemed to be having fun.

I would have stared longer at the battlefield, except the world started to change around me. I noticed my sister was in some sort of trance. Her eyes were wide as if she wasn't with us at the moment. Moments later, she was crying.

"Jo?"

" _He is going to die!"_

She didn't say it with her mouth.

 _What!? How am I able to hear her thoughts?! And what does she mean?!_

But my thoughts were turned to Dooku for some odd reason. It was like my mind was working fast than I could think. Like my sister, I heard his thoughts. His lips were not moving.

" _Soon, our last loose end will be silenced. All according to my master's plan. The Jedi will fall…"_

 _Loose end? What is he talking about?_

 _Wait…he knew. He sent him into the battle expecting him to die! How could he do that to him. After all he had done. He was just going to kill him in the end!_

 _I can't let him get away with something like this. But what can I do?! If I object to this, he will just kill us. But, what's to stop him from forcing us to work for him if he would do something like this. He won't let us leave unless we agree to join him. Either way, we lose. And what's stopping him from killing us, after we served our purpose. Either way we LOSE!_

 _Life is not about "winning"._

XxXxXx

When I was around twelve, I did soap box derby. I had just gotten home from a race. I lost the race, but my wheels won.

You see, they had instigated a new rule that wheels on soap box cars had to switch between driver to driver ever race. It was to prevent rookies from winning. So I lost, but my wheels won. Let's just say I was not happy. It wasn't that I lost. But, we had to wait to get our wheels back

"It's not Fair, we had to wait the entire race just to leave."

"Son, life isn't fair. You should be thankful you live in this nation. People in other nations would kill for what we have. People used to remember that. Not anymore. Eventually, our nation will destroy itself from the inside. Now, that won't happen for while, but it's important that you know life's not about winning. It's a about living right."

I huffed.

"It not that I lost. It that the kid who did win. He rubbed it in my face."

"Well that's life, do you think everything just went everyone's way in the past? No. Inventors, explorers, and leaders have been mocked. But look at what they achieved. This nation is a testament to that."

I remembered one more thing he said to me. I didn't understand it at the time. But I think I do now. I just needed to experience it.

"Did David back down when people around him told him to not face down that Giant. Did Job turn to sin when he lost everything. Did Jesus back away from his death on the cross. They succeed because they didn't give up. When you give up doing right, you give up more than you think."

And watching this battle unfold, I understood. I also knew what to do.

XxXxXx

.…..SMACK- the stock of my rifle made as it hit the back of Dooku's neck.

A sharp gasp escaped his mouth.

He fell forward to the ground unconscious. As soon as I knocked him out, the two blue droids had their attention turned to me. Before they could fire at me. I popped off shots at each of them. Each blast tore through the chest of them. The force of it caused them to get blown down.

As soon as they were down, I turned to look at the other separatist leaders present at the pavilion.

"Boo."

The duo screamed in terror and ran off.

All who were left on the pavilion were Jo, Bossk, a knocked out old man, and me. I turned to look at Jo and Bossk, and see looks of shock on their faces.

"What?! Why did you-"

"We need to hurry Bossk, Jango is in trouble!"

"What?"

"Dooku sent him out there with the purpose of tying up loose ends. He was never going to live after he was done with him."

Bossk looked appalled at the thought. "But, why would he work for Dooku if this is how he treats his employees?"

I shook my head, "I don't know, maybe he felt that he gave him an offer he couldn't refuse. But right now, we need a plan."

I walked over to my sister's pack, and took out the double barrel. I grabbed a few extra shells, putting them in my shorts pockets.

"I'm taking this with me Jo."

"What are you doing?!"

"I'm going down there to get Jango."

"Let us come with you!"

"No, at least not yet, I need you and Bossk to give me cover fire. Take out anyone you think I can't take care of. Here, Bossk."

I tossed him the blaster rifle. He caught it with a confused look.

"You will need that. The pistol you have won't be accurate from here. Also, I'm trusting you to help Jo. She still has trouble aiming. When I make it to Jango, get down as fast as you can to where we are. We will shoot are way out of here."

"You can count on me. I have a couple of scopes I can put on these real fast."

"Good." I walked over to Dooku's body.

"What are you doing Aaron."

I didn't answer Jo, not until got what I was looking for on him.

"I was looking for this."

It was a shiny hilt to one of the laser sword.

She stared at it with concern, "Careful!"

Bossk finished modifying the rifles, " What are you… A Lightsaber! He is a force user?!"

 _I still don't know what that is. But I will ask later. It's a strange looking shape for one. At least compared to the Windu guy._

 _Now let's see, this button activates it, right?_

I tested it, keeping the hole where the blade extended away from my chest.

As soon as I did, I saw the light shoot right out of it. To my surprise, the blade was also different than the others. It was a deep red color.

"Woah…"

I gave it a few practice swings, it was very light. Everytime I swung it, there was a whirring sound. I was satisfied by the weapon and walked over to the pavilion ledge.

"How are you going to get down?"

I pointed to my belt, specifically the tiny grappling hooks.

"I will be using it to get to go down a floor. I should be able to make it the rest of the way on foot. I will be using my guns and new weapon."

"Do you even know how to use it?

I turned to look at her and smirked, "What's hard to understand about swish swish, stab stab?"

Jo rolled her eyes, "Just be careful."

"I'm always careful."

I looked forward to see what I was about to enter.

 _Well, into the breach._

 _XxXxXx_

I backed up for a running start, and then dashed over the ledge. I turned around to shoot the ledge with the hooks.

They latched on, but I fell a few feet more before I got the results I was looking for. As soon I finally stopped, the belt tightened around me, causing some temporary pain for my waist.

 _That hurt!_

I waited a few moments, before I started moving down to the battlefield below. The area seemed very clear where I was supposed to land. The only thing littering the floor on my side was the poor soul who was killed by Jango.

Halfway down, I noticed a flying bug, and it was flying right at me. It was aiming at me with a blaster. Thinking fast, I aimed the double barrel right at it, and as I pulled the trigger, the pellets landed square in its chest, killing it instantly. The body fell to the ground ungracefully. I was close enough to the ground to hear the splat.

Finally, my feet touched the ground.

I noticed that most of the fighting was moving to the center. I needed to act fast. My hand moved to my harness controls, and I pressed a button. It caused the grapples to unhook and retract back to the belt. I took out the used shell from my gun and put it in my pocket, figuring I would try to find a way to make new shotgun shells shotshells later. I put a fresh shell in.

I also noted of the green core by my feet. I bent over and took the weapon. It would come in handy having two "lightsabers."

 _Well… show time…_

I charged strait into the battlefield.

I got most of the way there, before some droids turned my direction. They were about to fire, but were destroyed by blasts coming from the pavilion. The blasts left a remaining ig blue droid. The droid was now in a daze, due to not knowing where the blasts were coming from. His ignorance was his undoing. Taking the opportunity, I used the saber from Dooku. With a diagonal swipe, it cut clean through. The droid fell to the ground, in two sections.

That was only my first step into the battle.

I looked to my right to see one of the sword wielders struggling with a couple of bugs with a big gun. The sword fighter was a woman with black clothing, and what appeared to be a hood over her head. She was dodging left and right, avoiding the cannon fire.

 _I got to do whatever it takes to even the odds. We might need there help to get out._

I fired the double barrel at the bug on the trigger. It blew him out of his chair to the side, and knocked the other guy to the ground. The swordswoman looked my direction. I could see her face now. It was lime green with a few tattoo marks.

"Wait, who are-?"

She cut me off.

"No time to talk, in a mission."

I didn't wait to see her reaction, as I had turned back to the battlefield running.

As I was moving, a few shots fired from the pavilion were hitting bugs on my right side, who were aiming at me. As they fell, I saw two sword masters fighting for their lives as they were getting overwhelmed by droids and Geonosians. The first one was a man with a long head, and the other was a blueish woman with 'tails' on her head. They were both pushed in to a small area with the Geonosians wielding spears and droids firing blasts. They were deflecting the blasts back at the droids, but, the bugs were coming in closer. They wouldn't last much longer against that.

 _I think I can spare some time to help them._

I rushed to their aid.

I used the red blade to slice off one of their heads from behind. Half of the bugs turned my way and charged right at me. The closest one, with a spear, jabbed at my chest. I needed to time this right.

 _Dark Souls, don't fail me now!_

I moved slightly to the right, and used the back of my gun arm to parry the spear. It was enough to throw the creature off balance and for me to deliver a blow to the chest with my saber. As it dug in, I followed up with a horizontal swipe up. Cutting his top part up the center. It was brutal enough to cause some of the other bugs charging me to hesitate.

 _Big mistake._

I used my gun to blow back two of the bugs behind the smaller ones charging at me. All that remained were three spear bugs. One of them went to the side to try to cut me off. While the remainder went to the kill. I tried to use my sword to move the spears out of the way. To my surprise, it cut the weapons in half. The bugs were now spearless. Realizing they had no chance, they shrieked, and flew off. I turned to the remaining bug,

"Do you think you have a chance?"

It seemed to think for a second, before it through down it's spear, and flew away.

 _Smart bug…_

I turned to see that the warriors I was helping, now free of enemies. They looked tired if from blocking a lot of attack. Finally, the woman started to speak,

"Thank you-."

"Sorry, got to help someone!"

I ran off once more, hoping I wasn't too late. I was back on track, trying to make it to the center of the arena.

Then I saw Jango Fett.

"Jo!" I shouted into my earpiece, "you and Bossk come down NOW!"

The reek, or whatever Boba called it, charged him, and the force of impact knocked him over. Then as it ran, the reek rolled Jango through the dirt.

"Hey!"

I yelled to get the creature's attention, and it worked. It acted like a bull, and charged straight at me. I aimed my gun, but I remembered I forgot to reload. Instead, I holstered the double barrel on my belt and took out my colt. I placed a few good shots on its torso. But it kept coming. So I rolled at the last moment to the right and held the blade out to the left. It reached far enough to slice through as the Reek ran right through it. It fell forward, and let out a final breath.

 _I can't last much longer_ _doing this. I think I pulled a muscle on that roll._

I worked through the pain, and looked up to see where Jango was. He appeared to be surprised by my being there, and how I took on the beast. But, I couldn't really tell due to his helmet being on.

However, his attention was brought to a man running at him. It was the purple lightsaber wielder. He was a good ways off, but was gaining ground. It appeared Jango was going to use his jet pack to gain the high ground. When he did, sparks spewed out.

He pulled out his other pistol and started to fire…

But that was when I started to feel a pit in my stomach. This was it. This is what Jo was talking about. Somehow, I knew.

 _If I do nothing right now, Jango is going to die._

I holstered my pistol, and charged for my life. I was still hurting, but I wasn't about to give up. Time seemed to slow as I got closer. I needed to use everything everything I had left within me.

Jango was backing away with every shot he fired. The swordsman was now only a few feet away. He moved his blade in a fluid motion, towards Jango's neck. Right before it hit, the blade stopped where it was. It was blocked by another saber: mine.

Both Jango and Windu turned my direction. They saw me with gritted teeth.

It was hard on my arms blocking this one attack.

 _I don't think I can stop another one! How can that swing be so strong?!_

Neither of us did anything for a few moments. Until Jango decided to take advantage of the situation, "Get out of here kid!"

"Not without you!" I said through gritted teeth. "I didn't run out here just to turn around!"

While this was happening, Windu looked down to my belt. He noticed I had another saber, the one that I got from the alien.

He retracted his blade. He recognized it.

He looked mad.

"I should have figured you, for a Sith. You must be Dooku's apprentice, your weapon gives you away. Prepare yourself to die."

He was definitely ready to fight me, but I didn't have the time or the energy.

"Look I don't want to fight you right now. And I'm not a sith or whatever. I don't even know what that is."

"Then how did you obtain Master Trebor's Lightsaber?"

I knew I couldn't tell him that Jango killed the man. I decided with a half truth.

"He was dead when I found him. I figured his weapon would come in handy in saving Jango. It would be a last resort. I wouldn't be here right now, if it didn't turn out Dooku wanted Jango dead."

Both were shocked by this revelation.

"What!"

"That was his plan all along. You were never supposed to be in their plans for long. You were a loose end for he and his master's dark plan."

Windu was shocked, "Master's plan? How do you know that."

"He said it himself."

 _I definitely have to use half truth for that. I don't think they would accept telepathy as an answer right now. Not in this situation, and I need Windu's trust right now._

"You're not lying, but that doesn't make any sense…"

"Well it's the truth, and Jango… I'm sorry that Dooku betrayed you, but we need to work together with them," I pointed at the swordsman, "or we are not going to make it out alive. Can you do that?"

He took a moment before responding,

"I have no problem with it."

"Nor do I, but that doesn't mean you won't be free of your charges."

I smirked and said, "We'll cross that bridge when we get there. Right now, we have an army surrounding us."

As soon as I said that. More droids started to pour into the arena, and they forced us all to the center, leaving us with no escape. Obviously, and undesirable situation.

"Jango! On your right!"

He looked that way to see some of the rolling droids trying to get the drop on the three of us.

Of course, as soon as he saw them, he used his dual blasters to blow them away.

As they blew up, it signaled a swarm of the tan droids to come after us. Windu ran straight at them, blocking every strike back at them. I gave some cover fire with my 1911, each shot hitting them square in the head.

We were taking out a number of them, but there was no end in sight as the droids started to pour into the arena in innumerable numbers.

As we were moving back, something caught my leg. Causing me to fall on my back. I looked up to see a blue droid with its legs gone, it's left hand grabbing onto my left leg. It started to try to crawl on top of me. But, he was sliced in two by a Blue lightsaber. I looked up to see my rescuer, surprised to see the green woman I saved earlier. She moved closer to me, holding out a hand to help me up. I gladly took it and was pulled up from the dust, just in time to see a droid aiming his gun right at us.

I aimed my Colt to the head, but found I was out of bullets. Working fast, she pulled us out of the the way as soon as the droid fired at us.

Once again I found myself on the ground. Along with the girl. We looked back up to see the droid and some new pals. They were about to fire; however, they were blown away by repeating fire. We look behind us to see Jango blowing more of them down. He takes a moment before looking down at us.

"Alright love birds, get on your feet. You can have fun later."

I laughed in my head as I started to get up. And for some odd reason, I knew the girl was not amused and embarrassed.

 _I need to get control on this power._

We both got up and saw many of the warriors they had with them dead around us. There were about 30 of us left, and we were all pushed closer together. This was looking to be our end, as we were back to back and shoulder to shoulder.

At least, until all of the droids stopped. It gave me a strong feeling that this was not going to end well.

Suddenly, our attention was brought up to a voice being amplified from the pavilion.

Dooku was now up and rubbing the back of his neck where I whacked him.

"You have fought gallantly. Worthy of recognition in the history archives of the Jedi Order. And you, 'Guns'..."

 _Oh boy._

He signaled a droid to come close to us, and the droid snatched the saber in my hand. The droid started to back up into the surrounding army. The people left alive with me were confused.

"I'm sorry for your ignorance in choosing the wrong side. Maybe you and your sister would like a second chance? If you choose to join us, we will pretend this never happened and you will be allowed to live. I will forgive you for knocking me out and taking my light saber."

I could feel the shock and eyes boring into the back of my head as he said that last part. But I ignored the feeling and gave my response.

"I don't believe for one second that you would just let that go. If we worked for you, we would just have a target on our backs the rest of our lives. I don't want to live like that, and I know my sister doesn't want to live like that. But I have a question for you. I think I know the answer. Why did you betray Jango after all he has done for you?"

"I don't know how you found out, but he fulfilled his usefulness didn't fit in our plans. He knows too much to be left alive."

"And by we, you mean you and your master's plan. Right?"

I could tell he was surprised.

"I don't know how you know that. But it doesn't matter. If you all surrender now, your lives will be spared."

"We will not be hostages to be bartered Dooku!"

"Then I am sorry, old friend…"

The man lifted his arm to signal the droids to resume the fight. We needed to think fast if anyone was to get out of this. But I only had one thought.

I sighed deeply before saying, "Remember the Alamo…"

Jango, Windu, and the girl were the only who heard me.

"What?" They all said in union.

"A battle that was a last stand on my home world. This will be our last stand if we can't think of something quick. If nobody has any better idea, I say we all make one last charge to get out of the arena. Staying here is suicide."

They all nodded their heads in approval.

"I have nothing," Jango said.

"Same," Windu grunted.

"Then we agree the best bet for anyone getting out of this is to run for the exit?" the girl asked.

"Run and gun," I confirmed.

Windu spread the plan around the remaining numbers. They were all in agreement. As I was looking, I saw the prisoners from before still alive. I hoped once more for their survival, but I knew luck was running thin. It was time for action.

Then, out of nowhere, blaster bolts shot across the arena. By one of the entrances, I saw the source. It was my Sister and Bossk. They stormed the arena drawing the attention of the surrounding army. As that was happening, a loud sound came from over head.

We looked up to see a fleet of ships overhead, flying right towards us. The ships rained down large blasts of rockets and lasers. Every shot hit their marks in the surrounding army. Nobody with me could match the shock I had right now.

 _I THOUGHT THEY DIDN'T HAVE AN ARMY! ANAKIN, YOU LYING PIECE OF-!_

My thoughts were cut off by a hand grabbing my shoulder. It was Jango.

"We need to get to Jo and Bossk fast!"

We both ran through the barrage of bolts, and saw Jo and Bossk doing the same. We met halfway with Jango telling us all to head back to the main group. As soon as we got there, ships started landing in a circle around us. One of the ships 'doors' opened up, revealing people inside. Men in white armor, similar to Jango's, stormed off the ships. They made a defensive perimeter around us. Giving a chance for all of us to escape. A Grover-like voice from the ship in front of us ushered us to enter.

"Come with us, you must!"

We looked down to see what could only be described as a green Goblin. He had a look of concern.

 _You don't have to tell us twice._

We entered the ship as fast as we could and the soldiers re-entered the ships as we held onto whatever we could find. As the last man made it on. The doors closed, and the ships stormed up to the skies.

End Chapter

[Editor's Note: We apologize for the delay. School and additional commitments made this chapter difficult to finish]


	16. Chapter 16

WPRT CH. XVI

 _How Do You Get A One-Armed Man out of a Tree?_

Jo:

As the ship or whatever we were in climbed higher into the sky, I began to feel a little dizzy. I reached up for a grip.

I missed just as we hit an air pocket. The ship jumped and I lost my balance, landing hard on my rear.

A hand reached out to me and I took it. I looked up directly into the face of one of the helmets.

"Are you alright, ma'am?"

"Yes, thank you, sir."

Aaron yanked my hand up to one of the straps. I grabbed it so tight my knuckles were white.

Thankfully, our journey was short, and we landed not super far outside of the arena.

I quickly disembarked but tapped the goblin on the shoulder.

"Boba Fett is hiding back there in the arena. I have to go get him.

"No."

I looked at Aaron, then Jango, Bossk, and then the goblin.

"You don't understand. I told him to hide. We need to go get him. He's just a kid."

Three troopers approached and handed Aaron, Bossk, Jango, and I all canteens. I opened mine right away and took several swallows. It was nice and cool compared to the surrounding desert.

"Josuke, is this… water?" Aaron whispered, more for my benefit than anything else.

"Aaron, no."

"I have never seen water. All I drink is coke."

"That's...pretty much true."

"Water," he whispered.

"Okay, Aaron. That's enough."

I turned to the goblin again, trying to stay calm.

"Please, let us go back for the kid."

"Go back for him, we will. Press ahead first, we must."

"I assure you that I'm not an expert on this planet's length of a day, but what if it gets dark? And the place is still surrounded by the winged freaks. How are we going to get him back?" I asked.

The goblin looked me over.

"Full of fear you are."

"Not so much for me as for him. I know he has had some training, but I don't know if it will be enough."

"Put trust in him, you must."

I looked at Jango who nodded.

"If he trusts his son to survive, then I will, too."

The goblin nodded and turned toward some soldiers that were standing at some consoles. The readouts looked quite complex compared to anything available back home.

The goblin made us to stay near him and to not try any funny business.

We all looked intently at the consoles for several minutes. Just as some new ships that we had never seen before began taking off, Aaron drifted into a trance.

"Aaron, are you alright?" I asked.

The goblin turned around and studied Aaron's face.

"Aim above the fuel cells," he mumbled to himself.

We all looked at him as if he had three heads.

Suddenly, my brain snapped to a different scene and I could see what he was talking about.

I couldn't hear anything, but I could see Obi-Wan and the other man and lady standing in one of the air ships that we had just escaped in, and the other man, Anakin (as Aaron called him) pointing at a spot on the fleeing ships. The soldier fired his guns and the ship exploded into a lovely fireball.

When I snapped back to, ships in front of the Spire were beginning to take off.

"Aim above the fuel cells," I shouted at the soldiers over by the weapons panels. "The fuel cells on the Spire ships!"

"We don't take orders from-."

"Do what she says, you must," the goblin interrupted.

Just as the ships in my vision, these also exploded into fireballs.

The goblin eyed me suspiciously and then turned his gaze toward Aaron. Both of us blushed with embarrassment.

"Master Yoda, my name is."

"My name is Aaron, and this is my sister, Jo."

He continued to study us, up and down.

 _It's like he is reading my soul, and I don't like it._

A voice came in over the console that they were in pursuit of Dooku, and that the senator had fallen from the ship and was believed to be unconscious.

Master Yoda seemed to consider this carefully before ordering an craft of his own.

"Coming with me, you four are. Staying in the ship, you will be."

Master Yoda, the two bounty hunters, Aaron, a squad of soldiers, and I all loaded up onto this airship, and were soon hovering. This time, the doors of the ship remained open, and I held that strap like there was no tomorrow.

As we followed the first ship via the vehicle's radars, we were able to view the devastation of the battle thus far. Pockets of "jedi" and soldiers fought bugs and droids. There were what must have been tanks on both sides as well.

Droid parts littered the sand as well as bug and soldier bodies (or clones, I later found out. I always hated referring to them as clones instead of troops. Clones always sounded so...inhuman). There were scorch marks on the sand and on rocks as well as burning tanks and fallen ships. Turrets were set up on the enemy lines, firing green pulses at ships, men, and tanks alike.

The remains of the Spire ships and other escape vehicles were belching black smoke, and some droids dragged themselves by their arms along the sand.

 _At least they can't feel pain. I hope._

We climbed higher into the sky, and my stomach dropped. We could see the senator being helped up from the sand dune where she had fallen, and point while talking to a clone. I followed her finger to a hole up in the mesa ahead.

"IS THAT WHERE WE ARE GOING?" I shouted at Yoda over the engines.

He nodded.

My stomach turned and I knew that no good was going to come from what was up ahead.

XxXxXx

The ship approached a lip and it looked like it was just a hanger, but we wouldn't be there if it were just a hanger.

Yoda held up a hand to tell us to wait.

He approached the opening alone, where it looked like lights were lining the halls.

"What do you think the Jedi will do to us?" Jango asked out loud.

"I don't know. It's not like we did anything wrong- er...I mean, I know you have some stuff to answer for, but Jo and I are in the wrong place."

"A likely story," a clone from the pilot's seat said.

"It's true. We weren't even here three days ago. We were on Earth. Camping. We don't know what happened. Jango gave us a ride from Tatooine, and here we are."

The clone just scoffed and the rest of the crew of the ship ignored us.

"It could be worse," Aaron said.

"We could be dead," I replied.

"Well, that too. I was just thinking more along the lines of we could be on the wrong side of all of this mess. There's a good feeling about these new people. Better than the one I had about Dooku anyway. I think these guys really do want what's right for the galaxy. After all, we did just reveal are names to him."

I had to admit that I was more at ease among these jedi than I was in the presence of Dooku and his entourage.

Thankfully, we weren't waiting long before a nagging feeling made me drawn to the hallway.

"Aaron, I think we should go in there."

"I do, too."

"You Four are to stay put."

"Something is wrong. I can feel it. Let us go! Please!" I begged the clones.

They were quiet and went and whispered among themselves for a few minutes

"Go, but no funny business."

We stepped off the ship just as a second one came in for a landing, led by the senator.

We all ran into the hallway together and saw the scene.

Obi-Wan laid on the ground writhing in pain from his wounded arm and leg.

Anakin lay there as well, with his head on Obi-Wan's hip. He was missing an arm.

I don't know if it was the stress of the past three days, my sick sense of humor, nerves, or a combination of the three, but I looked Anakin dead in the eye and said with a straight face, "How do you get a one armed man out of a tree?"

END CH. 16

[Disclaimer: The Josuke Water thing is from the video "Josuke and Okuyasu Go Get Italian Food" on the channel Nemauporc. Apparently, this clip is from JoJo's Bizarre Adventures, but the clip itself is a spoof].


	17. Chapter 17

Ch. 17

 _You Wave… Goodbye For Now..._

Aaron:

"You wave!" she said with a grin after a brief pause.

 _Seriously Jo?! Are your really going to joke about a man's misery in front of him?_

"I'm pretty sure everyone in this room heard you."

I looked to see all eyes on us. Our fallen friends did indeed hear us, and even though they were in pain, they were still able to grown to the poorly timed joke.

I whispered to Jo, "What did Yoda say?"

She sighed, "No funny business…"

Dooku took this opportunity to speak "Well, I'm surprised to see you again so soon, Guns and Roses."

If Yoda was confused by the names he gave us, he didn't show it.

Dooku then eyed Jango and Bossk, "I am most surprised by you Jango. Siding with the enemy is not what I expected from you."

Jango scoffed under his helmet,"You wanted me dead, and seeing how that was the case, that would make your enemies my allies."

Jo butted in, "The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Bossk laughed at that. Gaining Dooku's attention.

"And you. Surely, being a bounty hunter, you can see you are outmatched. Wouldn't you rather live to see another day. Or work for me. You could make more money than you could possibly imagine."

 _The audacity of this man knows no bounds._

Dooku gave a sickly smile, "I recommend you take the deal."

This was the first time we had seen Bossk angry, "Forget it! I don't just hunt for the biggest payer. My people seek challenges, it's the thrill of the hunt that made me do this kind of work. I do it for the scorekeeper. And how could I betray the father of the kid who is like a son to me. I have known what it's like to be betrayed by family. No deal!"

I wondered what Bossk meant about that last part.

 _I'll ask him later. It's probably a touchy subject...and now is not the time._

With conviction, Yoda proclaimed, "This ends now Dooku, surrender you must."

"I'm sorry, old master, it is you who are at a disadvantage. I will give you two one more chance. Join us, or die here by my hands."

Yoda looked at Jo and I to see how we would respond.

 _Yeah right._

I answered, "I think you know by this point that that's not going to happen anytime soon."

Jo joined in, "Yeah, what he said. You would kill us anyway."

"You misunderstand. I sense great potential in the two of you. You can be more than what you are. We would rule the galaxy, together!"

Jo was mad, "We couldn't care less about power! What happened to 'Freeing the Galaxy of the Republic?' That doesn't sound like freedom!"

His face seemed to waver, so I decided to take up where Jo stopped, "Yeah, and what would your master think if he knew you were planning to sell him out?! Then, what would stop you from killing us when you were done with us?! We have told you this already, and we will tell as many times as it takes to get the point across. No Deal!"

As soon as I finished, the Count had donned a piercing gaze that could cut through ice. I would be lying to say that I didn't feel the anger coming off of him.

Yoda looked relieved by our responses. Then,Yoda looked to be in thought for a moment, before asking Dooku, "A new master, you have, my old padawan?"

His anger disappeared, replaced by a smirk.

"Oh yes. He has taken me under his wing, as it were. And has taught me the ways of the Force that the Jedi are afraid of. I am now more powerful than any Jedi."

He stretched out his hand towards the side, as if gripping something. As he did, a crunching sound was produced. All of us, save Yoda, looked towards the source of the sound and were surprised to see pipes for some sort of system being crushed.

 _How?!_

"Even you!"

He swung his arm forward, as if he was throwing something. Our eyes were still on the pipes, as it popped off.

 _Crap!_

It flew right at us. The four of us were prepared to move out of the way, but we didn't have to, as it flew another direction. We looked back forward to see Yoda with his hand stretched out. Somehow, Yoda pushed it back with some kind of power.

 _Again, how?!_

Dooku stretched his hands upwards. This time we were ahead of the game, and saw what the Count was doing with his power. We looked up to see a horrific sight. He was bringing the ceiling above us down on our heads! This time we moved out of the way. Except Yoda. He too, raised his hands to the sky. As if trying to catch the falling rocks. And he did. They were floating just above his head. Yoda moved them to the side with the power he used to catch them.

Dooku was far from finished. He stretched out his hand forward and shot out lightning from the tips of his fingers.

 _You gotta be kidding me?! Lightning?!_

Yoda held out his hand, and appeared to hold the lighting in his hand. After a moment, he move his hand forward and shot the lightning back at the Count. Dooku wasted no time reflecting it as well. But the man shot it off a different direction. He tried the lightning once more on Yoda. This time, Yoda did something different. As the lightning hit his hand, he held on to it longer. And he scrunched up his hand, making the lightning dissipate in his palm.

The green alien lowered his arm and lectured his old student, "Much to learn, you still have."

All of us not fighting were amazed by this display of power. What just unfolded in front of us seemed like something out of a fairy tale.

 _Is this what Dooku meant by potential power?!_

Dooku chuckled, "It seems we cannot settle this with the force"

The man reached down to is weapon.

"But with our skills with a lightsaber."

His saber then ignited, showing the red blade that was used earlier to save Jango.

He made a stance that was foreign to almost all of us. And to our surprise, Yoda dropped his cane. He then used his power to summon a small hilt for, what I guessed, a Lightsaber. I was found correct in my assumption as he igniting his saber. It was green blade, much like half of the other warriors at the arena.

Yoda then gave a shout. Jumping right towards Dooku, sword at the ready. They started clashing blades as Yoda was jumping all around the man. It appeared to be an even fight. Both were fighting with immense fury. It made it hard to keep up with seeing every attack. We would have been cut down in a second if Yoda was not here. Much like the two men on the floor.

 _Speaking of which…_

"Alright, it looks like Dooku is too enthralled with the fight to notice us getting the wounded. Bossk and I will get Anakin, while you and Jango try to get the other man on his feet. We will need to be quick about this. He may head are direction and stop us by taking one of them hostages."

 _I would definitely not put it past him at this point._

I held my hand up with three fingers out, giving us a three second countdown.

 _Three…. Two…..One….. GO!_

We all sprinted to our respective targets but made sure to be quiet about it. As we made it, all of us crouched down to remain hidden. I shook Anakin's shoulder to gain his attention, "Hey stay with us… can you stand?"

He nodded his head slowly. We got the wounded men to their feet. And started to guided them out of there. We were about halfway to the entrance, before Dooku's attention was grabbed by our rushing feet.

Dooku was not going to just let us get our friends out of here. He used his power to push Yoda away, then all of us to the floor hard. Causing gasp of air escape from our bodies.

"You didn't think you could escape from your own demise?! This is the end for you all!"

He did a big jump in the air. He then readied his blade and prepared to strike us all in one fell swoop. Yoda was not prepared for any of this and tried to rush to our aid. But it would be to no avail, he would not be able to stop him in time.

It was in this moment, my life flashed before my eyes. My earliest memories ran through my head, times when our wholes families got together for celebrations. It was the good times, the days that felt like years. I thought back to the times when I was a kid with my family going to Church every Sunday. We still did, just not with our family like the old days.

And I remembered the bad too. Not a lot of friends and only having a few. I remembered having an even worse time at school. Where social status is what made the school worked. People like my kind (A goody two shoes) were ignored or mocked.

But, It made me who I am today. I needed the bad with the good.

 _I did not come this far to die now, and I don't think you did either Jo! We are here for a purpose! A God-given purpose! We've been through a lot for the last few days! We should not be alive right now! We just need to block one strike!"_

On instinct, I reached down for the lightsaber on my belt and activated it. I held it up at the ready to defend my friends with the green blade. And somehow, Jo had gained one too! I was not going to question how she got.

 _She's on the same page as me now._

Dooku was almost to us.

We made a defensive move with are blades, forming an x. The man's blade connected with our's. It slammed them very hard. Jo and I almost lost grip with the blades. It's not as easy like it is in video games or action movies. It took our combined strength to keep the man from killing us.

Yoda the came to our aid as he regained the Count's attention by taking a swing at him. He blocked it with his sword and continued their duel. It was much appreciated as we all got back to our feet. Getting the wounded out of here was still are goal right now.

Moments later, we made it back to the entryway. We set Anakin and the other man down by the archway. They had a relieved look on their faces.

We looked back to see Yoda being led are way. Yoda was about four feet in front of us before they both stopped fighting. Dooku then jumped back to gain some distance. Both Dooku And Yoda looked somewhat tired.

The man then exclaimed proudly, "This is the end for you all! It's such a shame you didn't join me, Guns and Roses. It's a shame for you to die so young!"

"We still have the advantage!"

He laughed at Jo's remark, "So you think!"

Once more, the man stretched his hands upwards.

Making a crushing motion with his hands, the Count summoned his power to cause the entire ceiling in the room to start crumbling.

Dooku then started running to his escape vehicle.

Rocks started to hit the ground, and one of them just so happened to hit my sister hard on her back.

Jo fell forward into my right arm, with a sharp yell escaping her mouth.

This causes Bossk and Jango to aim their blasters at the running man and started firing ferociously. Disappointingly, all of the blasts were missing their target. We had to start moving back, but I wanted to have a crack or two at the man before he got away. Holding my sister, I used my free hand to go to my colt. I fired a few shots at the man's running direction. When the Count was about to enter his ship, one of my bullets made contact with the back of his shoulder. He fell forward into his craft with a yell of pain.

Then the room started to fall apart around us. Signaling everyone to get out of Dodge.

Putting away my gun, I held my sister bridal style. We all made a run for the doorway with the wounded.

Jo and I escaped the room by the skin of are teeth. We made it to the platform that we had arrived on, to see Dooku's ship being shot at by soldiers and a lone senator. The villainous man escaped sadly, to fight another day.

We all stared at the ship until it disappeared out of our sight.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

We were brought back to the situation by the wounded groaning.

Padme saw Anakin's arm, then yelled, "MEDIC!"

Two of the armored men came to the man's aid They took a few moments to treat him before others came to lead both Anakin and the senator too the ship. When they started to check the other man, I decided to look at Jo's wound. It wasn't pretty. The rock had made multiple scrapes and gashes along her back. Blood was running from them fast. Jango rushed over when he saw the damage, and yelled to the medic's.

"We need a can of Bacta! Now!"

One of the medics tossed Jango a can, which he caught. And the man proceeded to spray the can's contents all over the open cuts. My sister had a look of relief.

 _Good._

Medics took the other man to the ship, and then the ship took off. Then not a moment later, another one took its place. It opened up revealing another pair of medics coming to my sister's aid. And they led her to the ship as we all followed behind. Inside, we noticed some medical equipment. As soon as Jo laid down with her back side up on the medical Bed. The medics got right to work. When we had all made it inside, the ship took off.

It was quiet for a few minutes. I didn't like that. So I decided to strike up a conversation with Yoda.

"So,where are we heading?"

He laughed a bit before asking, "Nervous you are?"

I sheepishly replied, "Well, I don't like it when people I'm around are quiet."

Once more he laughed a little, "Worry not, heading to the command ship we are. To sort out the rest of the problems here. As well as taking the wounded with us to get medical treatment there. Safe your sister will be."

That took a heavy weight on my shoulders. I looked toward Jo and saw bandages being wrapped around her waist, but my attention was brought back to Yoda.

"Curious, I am, with the bounty hunters. How did you meet? And what system are you from?"

I took a few moments to think before telling the creature.

"We meet Jango and Bossk about two days ago on a planet called Tatooine. We helped them in a sticky situation, and they decided to help us out in return. As for the other question. I'll get back to you on that one. It's a long tale. There would be no point in repeating myself unless it was with everyone who needs to hear it."

"Understand, I do. Some tale, it must be."

 _Oh boy, you have no idea…._

Everything was quiet once more, it was like that for a few minutes until Bossk started talking to one of the soldiers close by.

"These are some well designed ships you have. What do you call them?"

"We refer to them as Low Altitude Assault Transport. Or LAAT for short."

Jo was fast asleep on the bed at this point but was sleep talking.

"Acronym…."

That got our attention, and she said it again.

"Its an acronym, Mrs. Peters….."

 _Cute._

I sighed. "She is just dreaming she is in her fourth grade English class."

The soldier Bossk was talking to was confused, "Fourth grade? English? What are you talking about?"

Yoda took charge this time, "Find out soon, I believe we will."

"You will."

The 'LAAT' then shook a little, signalling we'd left the planet's atmosphere. It was a different feeling than I was on Jango's ship, the Slave One. Most likely it was fact that this ship didn't feel like a interplanetary ship, and It didn't have the supplies for the time it would take.

The rest of the trip was rather uneventful, as it only took about five minutes before we came to a halt.

We had arrived.

The craft opened its doors to reveal a huge hanger with soldiers everywhere, running around to complete assignments. Alongside the soldiers, the hangar was also littered with LAAT's like the ones we just rode in, as well as ships we hadn't seen in action just yet. The entire place was a technological marvel. The hangar was wide open to the vacuum of space, yet it wasn't sucking us out. It was then that I noticed there was a energy like power around the entrance's edges.

One of the soldiers, not in armor, rushed over to the medics tending to my sister. She was still sound asleep as they checked her vitals. They had what looked like an x-ray device, checking for any bone fractures. But before I could hear the results, they started to move her away.

Yoda then spoke up, "Go with them, you must. Send for you later, we will. Tell us your story, you must. Take care, for prisoners you are not."

He then turned to the two bounty hunters, "Some questions, we would like you too answer. Follow me to the bridge, you must."

Bossk was worried, "Oh boy…"

They started to walk off with Yoda leading the way. It was then when I proceeded to catch up to the medics. It looked like my sister was being taken to a door next to the one Anakin went in. I hurried over to my sister before we got split up. It turned out that the medic and my sister entered an elevator.

I yelled to the medics, "Hold that door!"

They held the door open and I ran inside and let out a gasp of air.

"Thank you!"

"No problem, are you alright sir?"

I finally composed myself to respond.

"Yes, I am. We have been running around a lot today. The planet wasn't exactly a fun place for a battle…"

He chuckled.

"Well, don't worry, I think this will be the last time you'll have to do that on that world. I heard that we will finish off the remaining forces by tomorrow. Then we all can say goodbye to that dust bowl."

The other medics agreed, "And good riddance."

That caused me to laugh too. But I needed to know something.

"Is she going to be alright?"

"Yes she is fine, we checked for broken bones, and everything seemed to be in order aside from the scrapes across her back. How did it happen?"

"We were in a room that 'the enemy' escaped to. Then when we were about to capture him, he started to collapse the room, and one of the rocks slammed hard against her back. We treated it after we got out, and you know the rest."

He nodded at that, and the elevator door opened up to what I assumed was the medical wing of the ship. There were all kinds of tools for who knows what, and cots filled with patients. I saw Anakin, still knocked out. The other man was awake, he seemed just to have a few cuts on him.

 _I need to get the man's name. Calling him Anakin's friend is kind of getting old._

I followed the medic out of the elevator. When the cart stopped, I decided to ask the medic how long it would take for Jo to wake up.

"Not long, an hour at the most. She just needs some rest. Bacta can take a lot out of people, especially if they aren't used to it."

It was then another man handed the medic something.

He, oddly enough, looked like the medic….. who I realized looked like…. A younger Jango…..

 _Oh boy…._

"Hey, you wouldn't happen to know a Jango Fett? Do you?"

Both men looked shocked, "You could say that. We're are all clone templates of him."

That revelation churned in my head for a moment.

 _What?_

I had no words.

"Heh, I guess it's quite a shock for you?"

That broke my train of thought, "Wha-, No it's not that your clones necessarily. Jango told us his son was a clone. We didn't know that it was a whole army."

They seemed to accept that response. Although, there was something else. But I would have to save that for another time. Something to ask Jango.

"So… what are your names?"

"My designation number is CT- 1152, and my brother is CT-1151."

This confounded me, "Don't you have names?"

They look upset for a moment before responding. "We didn't really get names in training. Most clones do, but we haven't had any good ideas for ones that stuck. Honestly we don't find it a big deal. Names really belong to the ones doing the jobs out in the field, risking their lives for their brothers."

That would not do.

"That's stupid, you help the soldier's by saving them on the medical tables. Stuff like that can take hours to preform. And everyone needs a name. No matter what their job is. How about… Hawkeye, and Trapper?"

'Hawkeye' looked confused, while 'Trapper' was excited.

"Really, you think we deserve nicknames?!"

'Hawkeye' put a hand on the man's shoulder, "Hold up now, why did you choose those names?"

I smiled, "Some fictional characters from a story that I wish were real. The war was real and the stuff that happen was based off it. Just the characters weren't. They were army doctors who worked in a Mobile hospital not far behind the front. The life they had was hard, but they knew when to have a good laugh. For them, laughter was the best medicine."

'Hawkeye seemed to think about it before responding, "Alright, we'll test those names to see if they stick this time. And…. Thank you for the ideas."

A smirk grew on my face, "No problem… Hawkeye."

Hawkeye rolled his eyes and Trapper laughed by his side. They proceeded to get back to work. And I looked back down at Jo, she had a smile on her sleepy face. My staring was interrupted.

"That was kind of you…"

I looked and saw Anakin's friend, "What?"

"Giving those clones names, that was nice of you to do that for them. They really appreciate it."

"Oh, well, it didn't seem right not to."

"It's not just that. You ran straight into the battle when you knew you could have died. You and your sister almost did die. With all of us. So, why?"

"I had to save Jango. He helped us when he didn't have to, and we wouldn't had been able to get anywhere without him. That man saved us. If I had let him die, it would have been on my conscience till the day I died. I was raised to help people, even to be willing to give the shirt off my back. Also, I made a promise to his son."

"And what was that?"

"That I won't let families be separated when I have some control over the situation, even at the cost of my life."

The man seemed to ponder that.

"I see…"

"I also have a question: What is your name?"

He laughed, "Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Obi-wan Kenobi. Pleased to meet you Guns."

Then, he held out his hand for a shake.

Now it was my turn to laugh, "It's Aaron. Aaron Shepherd."

I then shook Obi-wan's hand.

"Ahem…"

We looked to the source of the sound and I was surprised to see the green woman that helped me at the arena.

"Sorry for interrupting, but I was sent to help out with your treatments."

"Oh yes. Thank you Barriss. It's much appreciated."

"I'm happy to help. I'll start with Anakin. He lost his arm after all."

"By all means."

She then walked over to Anakin's side and proceeded to observe the damage. A droid then came by with a robot arm. She took it and proceeded to attach it to the stub where his arm was!

 _Wow. The wonders of this galaxy continue to amaze me. I may lose my sanity yet!_

She took a few minutes making adjustments to the device After she was finished with the arm, she touched his forehead with her fingers.

She closed her eyes for a few moments.

Suddenly, Anakin's eyes shot open. Barriss proceed to move back to give the man some room.

Anakin looked around the room before sitting up. He sat up ever so slowly, and ass he did, he lifted his new hand to his head.

Anakin was shocked by it's cold touch. As soon as he saw the hand, terror went across his face.

 _I don't blame him. I would have the same reaction if I had a robot arm all of a sudden._

He seemed to stare at his hand in thought. Disappointment soon replaced it however.

"He got away…."

"Yeah, he used some kind of power to bring the ceiling on us."

Barriss decided to but in, "The Force."

 _Oh, I think Anakin mentioned something like that. I should have put the pieces together._

"Ok, he used 'the Force' and brought the place on us…. one of the rocks hit my sister. Hard."

 _She is all I got now. I don't think I can handle being alone. Not so far from home…._

"The Attachment you have for your sister is dangerous…"

Obi-wan was shocked by Barriss and chastised, "Now padawan, don't be rude! They weren't raised in our Order. In fact, they come from a world outside the republic. Maybe even beyond our galaxy."

She took the news rather well but countered, "Be that as it may, they still have the Force, it will only lead them to the darkside."

"Darkside?"

Anakin made it simple, " Evil."

 _Eh?_

"So you're saying because of the attachment I have for my sister, it will lead us to do evil because of the power I have?"

They all shook their heads yes, though I noticed that Anakin was the last to agree.

*Pffff*, "That sounds silly."

Barris gave me a hard glare.

"Laugh as much as you want it's still true."

She stated it as a matter of fact.

"No it isn't," I said

Obi-wan looked interested in what I thought.

"And why is that?"

Something told me that I needed to explain this the best I could.

"All are born loved."

The room grew silent. They had no idea how to respond. So I tried to explain.

"I'm not talking about the love that a mother has for a baby. A mother can hate a baby when or even before it's born. I'm talking about the One who makes the soul of the baby. Only an attachment of great proportions could make something of that quality. You like your souls, right? No complaints about them?"

They were still stunned, but agreed with a nod.

 _It was rhetorical. But alright._

"Souls don't just happen. It's like saying that a blaster just came together working just fine. That's just silly. And every soul is individual to each person. It's a craft. And a Craftsman is only good as much as he loves it. It's a strong attachment that gives us life."

Anakin looked upset and had his head down. He then asked me questions that seemed hard to answer.

"Then why did he let us go? Why does that maker let bad things happen to people, like death, murder, stealing,... slavery?"

I could hear and feel the pain in that question.

"He had to."

He didn't actually expect me to respond. He looked up confused. So I continued.

"It would be dangerous not to. He makes souls with the capability to grow, and choose. If he doesn't send them away. They won't grow, and have no love in themselves. The love they would have would be robotic. With freedom of choice, it is real. Although with freedom of choice, people will choose not to. They would rather choose themselves, being their own gods. Making their own rules. God knows this. But it's a risk worth taking. He is giving us a chance to choose Him."

They seemed to understand it a little bit more.

 _One more push should do it._

"It's like a farmer wanting to grow food. He has to have faith, that when he plants his seeds, that they will grow into plants that can provide food. He knows about the risk he is taking. There could be a drought, animals could eat his food, bugs and Insects could destroy it, or a fire or a storm could destroy everything. But the payoff is worth it."

"Interesting."

All nearly jumped from our spots. We looked behind me to see Yoda and Windu.

Mace looked peeved off about something. But then looked confused at what Yoda said.

It confused me too, "I'm sorry?"

The Gremlin did a creepy, suppressed laugh.

"Most wouldn't have not tried to change a Jedi's mind on their beliefs. They wouldn't care or the would try to say 'right they are because they are'. But stood firm, you did. With what you believe and explained it simple for anyone to understand."

The green alien took a moment to clear his throat and continued, "So tell me, what drives you to care so much?"

I made my answer simple as I could.

"The love I have for God. And the love He has for me."

Yoda gave a "hmmm" before saying, "To give you this power you have. As well as getting you this far. He must really care about the both of you."

I was kind of worried, "How much did Jango tell you about me and my sister?"

"Worry not, Jango has only told us that your home is not part of the Galactic community. And we can continue this topic some time later. Perhaps with the council, right Master Windu?"

His mind was still trying to understand what happened, "Uh.. yes. That's right. We have decided to hold off on the meeting until we can all make it back to Coruscant…"

"Croissant?"

The question came out rather lazy from the mouth of my now smi-conscience sister.

 _Food first._ E _h sis?_

I decide to try to wake her up. She needed to at least hear this, whether she remembered or not.

I grabbed her shoulder and shook it slightly. I whispered in her ear, "Jo... Jo! You need to wake up. This is important."

Her eyes fluttered open. She sat up slowly holding her head.

"Uhhhh… what's going on?"

Windu decided to start back at the beginning.

"We are having a meeting on Coruscant in the Jedi Temple. We need you to be there, we have questions to ask you. Jango and his friend will be there as well."

The man turned to a clone soldier, "Let them in."

The clone obeyed, and let in Bossk and Jango.

The latter had his helmet off and his head down.

"Jango's fate will be decided by the council. He may have had a change of heart. But that doesn't redeem him of his previous crimes. Terrorism, assassination attempt, twice, and resisting arrest."

Jango clenched his hands hearing what he had done.

"No matter what happens to him, I'm afraid his son will have to be taken from him for now."

To say Jo and I were shocked, would be an understatement. Jo was about to cry, "You… you can't!"

"We have to, he has no other family that can have custody of him. His friend Bossk can't take him, he is partly involved with aiding Jango, though not with the crimes. So Jango's son will be given over to the Republic Social Services. I'm sorry to say, depending on what your fate is, you may never see your son again."

To say that Jango was upset by this would be an understatement. When I met Jango, I saw a man who was strong. Someone who could handle anything. But there's more to a person than strength alone. Right now in front of me was a broken man. Jango didn't take the news well. His son is his only treasure to him. Only wanting what was best for him. It wasn't a pleasant sight to see. The man fell to his knees, arms limp, and lost in himself.

 _This isn't right. But can we d- wait a minute!_

"Now hold it!"

All eyes were on us again, "You said that there was no family left that can take him, right?"

"Yes."

"Well you're wrong."

I sat on the same bed my sister was lying in and swung my left arm around her. She shot me a bemused look.

"You see, we're Boba's godparents."

The biggest smile I had ever seen suddenly appeared on Jo's face. Jango's head shot up in shock, like as if he forgot (He did). Bossk gave his one of a kind grins. While the Jedi were shocked as well.

Jo was ecstatic at this, "That's right!"

The two Jedi that were standing up looked towards Jango.

"True, is this?"

Jango replied to Yoda, "Yes, I did make them Boba's godparents! I don't have any documents stating that they are. But you can ask my son. He knows that they are."

Windu held up his hand, "That won't be necessary. We can sense you're telling the truth. Your son will be in their care for the time being. They will meet us at the Jedi temple with your son."

"It would be for the best if you leave, as soon as you can, this system. No estimated time, we have, when we will be finished cleaning up this mess. "

My sister then raised her hand and asked, "How are we going to get there? My brother and I don't exactly have any training in flying spaceships?"

"Jango's ship has to be impounded, as it counts as evidence. So we will have someone else bring you."

Windu looked at Anakin, "You will be taking them. Padme has already agreed to take-."

He gestured towards Jo and I, telling us to say who we are.

 _This is it._

"Aaron Shepherd."

"Joanne Shepherd, but please call me Jo."

Windu nods, "However, I'm sure she will not object to bringing the child with you as well."

"And Bossk."

All eyes turned to Jango who was now standing up slowly.

Bossk asked, "What?"

Jango sighed, "You need to stay with Boba, he still needs a familiar face that he has known his whole life. The Jedi won't murder me, I'll be alright. Is that alright?"

The last question was asked towards Windu, "Yes. He is not the one who committed the crimes. He just assisted you. As long as the Shepherds are with your son, there is no law preventing it."

"Now wait a moment. Jango, are you sure?"

I understood Bossk's concern, and so did Jango.

"I'm sure Bossk. I need to know that he has as much protection. Tatooine is a prime example of that he needs that."

 _He can say that again._

"Alright. I'll do it. But that doesn't mean I like it."

"Almost set then, you are."

Yoda looked to the same clone that let Jango and Bossk in.

"Let the senator in, you may."

The trooper gave a quick salute and did just that. When Padme entered the room, she noticed Anakin and looked relieved. She then took notice of the two bounty hunters beside the Jedi. Specifically Jango. She gave the man a sharp glare. And to her surprise, Jango bowed his head in shame.

Turning to Yoda she asked, "Is something wrong?"

"Oh no Senator Amidala. Ask you a question, we would like."

"Ok?"

He cleared his throat, "Would you mind taking a few more passengers than intended?"

Without hesitation she replied, "Of course. Who else will I be taking?"

"Bring you would, this Trandoshan, and a young boy."

"Who does the young boy belong too?"

Yoda hesitated for a moment before motioning towards Jango and responding, "This man here."

Padme's head turned towards the man in shock, "Your son?"

Jango didn't respond at first, his head was still bowed. After a silent moment to himself he replied, "Yes."

We all knew Jango was a prideful man. And it was now he understood his mistakes. It was almost fate to have to depend on the person he was suppose to kill a few days ago. It struck his pride as a Mando. Padme was silent, and every second was hurting him more and more. Everyone in the room saw it. It was almost as if he was hoping she would say no. Only to complete his shame.

"Do it, you do not have to. Planetside the boy is Hiding. We may be able to get a ride for him in a few hours or more."

"I'll do it."

Jango's head shot up.

"Thank you senator. Grateful, I'm sure Jango is."

She shook her head, "I'm not doing it for him. I'm doing it for the boy. I can only imagine what's happening to him now."

From what I saw, Jango could care less about himself. Only his son's well being.

"And since you have a lot of people to protect. Too few of guards you have. Would you mind if Barriss would come along as well?"

"Not at all Master Yoda."

Barriss was not so sure however, "Master, surely anyone would be better suited with this mission. I could be off better use here."

Yoda chuckled, "Experience in this field, you need, young Padawan. A matter of great importance is this. The Sith have now revealed themselves. No one is safe now. They may strike whenever. And do not worry, there is more than enough help to assist the wounded."

The padawan thought for a second before replying, "If you insist Master Yoda, I will go."

Padme made a quick glance to Anakin (I was the only one to notice this) and said to Yoda, "We will meet you on Coruscant and deliver them to the temple; however, we will need to make a slight detour to my home world. I have some important documents there that I forgot to bring with me. And Anakin left some of his equipment there as well."

Anakin seemed confused before he responded, "That's right! I left some of my tools that I use to work on machines."

"Very well. You may go to Naboo. That may actually work out for the better since it will give the counsel time to organize itself."

"Agreed Master Windu. Careful you must be. You may all leave when you are ready. To the bridge, Master Windu and I must go."

They then proceeded to leave us here.

 _Whenever we're ready huh?_

"Are you ready, Jo?"

She thought for a moment, "I don't know. I know I hurt my back. I feel okay, just tired."

Jango then butted in, "It's the Bacta working. It's a medicine that helps speed up the natural regeneration process. I used the whole canister on your back. And unlike normal wounds scabbing or leaving scars, wounds treated with Bacta makes it like it never happened."

 _Wow. I bet Doctors back home would have a field day with this. Say goodbye to Neosporin._

"So in other words, she is going to be ok soon?"

Jango laughed, "She is probably ok now. Jo just needs to watch herself now. If it got infected, that would have been another story… Aaron, before you go, could I have a word with you?"

His tone changed with the question. He whispered it so that only Jo, Bossk, and I could hear it. The rest were chatting away. Anakin telling Obi-wan goodbye and Padme asking Barriss some questions about her.

"About what about?"

"It's just for you to hear, it's rather important."

It made me wonder what was so important that he couldn't say it infront of the others.

"Alright."

I got up from my spot leaving the others to only guess what he wanted from me. Jango led me to the farthest wall away from prying ears.

"What's this about Jango? Is something wrong?"

"No, rather I have a proposition for you. If you want."

 _Proposition?_

"What kind of Proposition?"

"How would like to join the ranks of the Mandalorians?"

… _..what?_

"I'm sorry, did you say-?"

"Yes I did, and I'm not asking lightly. This opportunity is offered to too few people nowadays. Not many can show they have what it takes. And I will be honest with you… I haven't really shown true honor as a Mando the last few years. I had to face many challenges, I have lost brothers and sisters in arms over the decades. And a Father. I was alone. I did things i'm not proud of as a Mando. I was given a second chance. But somehow I knew that by joining Dooku, I signed myself to die. So later I decide that leaving Boba with everything I own and the traditions that I past down to him was enough to make amends."

As he went on in the story, I could hear the agony of his guilt he has held, from what he had just said, for decades. But he was not done yet.

"But then by some chance, I meet both of you. You both brought up some memories that I held down for years. I thought there was no hope. The both of you proved me wrong. You helped me remember my traditions I had abandoned. You charged into the battlefield and saved me, you saved my son from enslavement, and defeated every challenge that came before the both of you. Taking down a reek in the middle of a battlefield the way you did is not easy. I would say you completed part of your initiation and earned the right to become a Mando. A true Mandalorian."

"I… don't know? How many True Mando's are left?"

Jango bowed his head, "I'm the only one left…"

 _He wasn't kidding when he said he lost his brothers and sisters…_

"But there are other Mandalorian groups out there. Some stick to the traditions. But other groups have strayed far away from them. They have become murderers and thieves. The group Deathwatch, which I have told you before, took everyone I knew. My parents, my mentor, and my….. older sister…"

I now realized that Jango related to me more than I knew. I couldn't imagine what that is like. But Jango still wasn't done.

"I have even fought the Jedi on multiple occasions. It was a little war of ours that took out the rest of us. I alone was spared by the Jedi. Only to be sold as a slave by a Governor. Then one day, I had an opportunity to fight back. And I took it. I destroyed everything and everyone that belonged to DeathWatch. But it didn't bring them back. I thought I could never forgive the Jedi, but the Sith were far worse than I could have Imagined. The life of a Mandalorian is never easy. So if-."

"I'll do it."

Jango was glad, "Are you sure. Once you choose this, you can't go back."

"Jango, I have done a lot these past few days. Saving your family's butt on multiple occasions, fighting on battlefields, and other crap we have dealt with. But if there is one thing that I learned about you is that would not ask this question if you did not think I was able. So I'll do my best."

"That is what I wanted to hear! I have something I want you to have. I thought I wouldn't find a use for it. Until now. Sadly It's on my ship at the moment. Have Bossk come over here, he will somewhat know what I'm talking about."

I did just that, I started to walk to Bossk, "Jango wants you."

"What for?"

"He said you will know."

Bossk was only more confused, but still answered Jango's demand.

Leaving me with Jo.

"Well Aaron, what did Jango want to tell you?"

 _I think it's safe to tell her, Jango just didn't want any pressure on my decision._

"He ask me if I wanted to be a Mandalorian. I said yes."

"Just like that?"

"Not really, he said I earned it. Completing what they would call a coming of age ritual, or a Verd'goten."

"Really? Congrats then. But do you think it was just that?"

"I don't know, but he seems to have confidence in me. So I'm going to do my best to prove myself."

"Alright, but what did he want Bossk for then?"

"Jango said he wanted to give me something. But it was back on the ship. And Bossk would know where to get it."

"Wow, I wonder what it could be?"

 _Who knows But Jango._

The Bounty Hunters talked a bit more before Jango said his goodbye to Bossk with a handshake. Bossk came over to us. And Obi-wan was up at this point walking over to Jango, "I was just given a message by Yoda to bring you to the Bridge so they can keep a closer eye on you."

"Very well, I have said my goodbyes to everyone I needed to."

Jo looked hurt at what Jango said. As the two men left the room, Bossk chose to speak up.

"Alright, Jango told me where to get what he wanted for you. He also mentioned that it's the one on the right. Whatever that means. It must be a real surprise. And he says that he wishes us well and hopes to see us at the meeting with his son."

Jo then barged in, "Did he have anything to say to me?"

Bossk replied, "No, he had nothing to say about you. What would he-? Oh. Oh! You like him don't you!"

That yell got everyone's attention. And all eyes were on her. She could do nothing but stutter, "N-no!"

I sigh, "Jo it's ok if you do."

She got real mad at me, "Stay out of this."

I held my hands up in defeat, "Ok, ok. Take it easy now. He wasn't trying to upset you. Right Bossk?"

Bossk now saw Jo as the embarrassed type. "Yes of course! I was only just seeing if it was true."

"...Fine, let's get going then."

She got up from her bed and started stretching.

She was distracted enough for me to whisper to Bossk.

"She likes him."

Bossk held a suppressed laugh as Jo finished stretching. And about this time, the others came over. Padme spoke first, "We are ready to leave whenever you all are."

"Yeah, we have all of are things with us. But can your ship accommodate all of us Senator?"

Jo's question was a good one. We wouldn't be able to go if we could fit everything on it.

"Of course, it's a H-type Nubian."

Bossk started coughing when he heard that.

"Is there a problem."

"You went to Geonosis on a Yacht?!"

That got our attention for sure.

"Well when you put it that way, it does sound rather crazy. But nonetheless, it has plenty of room and food for the trip. So when we are on our way, make yourselves at home."

Nobody could complain at that.

 _As long as it works, I could care less._

Anakin took this time to speak up, "I sent a message to my droid R2 a while ago. He should be bringing the ship to the hanger any minute."

 _Good._

"Then let's get going."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

We all walked over to the elevators that we had previously entered. The ride was eventful. After a couple of minutes, the doors opened up to reveal the hanger we used to get on this ship. Jo didn't get to see it before and was in a daze.

"Wow." was all she could say.

At this time, a sleek silver ship entered the hanger. Hatches opened up on the bottom of the craft as it moved closer to the ground. Legs exited the slots right before it touched down. Overall, it was a nice looking ship.

Then the ship opened up with a droid by the door. It was a blue and white droid with two legs. But two became three as it popped one out from underneath it. It started whistling at the top of the ramp.

"Yes R2, we missed you."

Anakin and Padme lead the group into the ship. When we entered, all except Anakin and Padme were blown away by the ship. It was really designed for comfort.

Anakin spoke up, "Take a seat ladies and gentlemen. We have a job to to do."

We did just that and fasten the seat belts around us. Each one of us were at a chair looking at some ship vitals. I was a good thing we weren't going to battle with this. Jo and I would not know the first thing to do.

The ship shot up and launched into space.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Anakin gave a valid question, "Any idea where he may be hiding?"

Jo decided to answer, "We don't know… there can only be one of two places where he is. The arena, or the ship. Thankfully, I think both places are not to far from each other."

"Alright then, plotting a course to the arena. It's going to be night at this time so be careful exploring. There may be more than a child hiding there, so be ready for a fight."

In unison we all said, "Agreed."

The rest of the flight was a breeze. It took about the same amount of time as it took to get to the arena, as it took to get to the 'Republic cruiser'. We landed right in the center of the arena. Still littered with parts of both machine and man. We all got up to leave the ship. Jo and I decided to leave our backpacks as there was no point. But we did bring are guns and "borrowed" lightsabers.

Anakin once more took the lead with Barris close behind. The rest of us bunched up behind them. R2 stayed on the ship making sure that nobody unwanted would take it.

At the end of the ramp, a droid was their to meet us.

"Oh master Anakin! I'm so glad to see you safe. R2 left me here all alone to get the ship! I am so glad you came back to get me!"

Anakin laughed nervously, "Of course 3PO! We came as fast as we could. But we also have to do something else here. So go ahead and get on the ship. I'll make sure to check your systems on the way to Naboo, you look like you've taken a beating."

"Oh thank you Master, it has been one dreadful day."

The machine then ascended up the ramp. We proceeded to continue walking across the arena. The smell was incredibly awful, bodies all around were rotting from the sun that beat down on them not so long ago. We were about leave through one of the arena's entrances when Anakin brought us to a halt.

I spoke up, "What's up?"

"I don't have any idea where we need to go. Can one of you take point? You all probably have a better idea of the way out.

All of us looked at each other. Nobody seemed up to the task. I volunteered, "I'll do it."

Jo grabbed my shoulder, "Aaron…"

"I'll be fine Jo, all of you just watch my back."

Everyone agreed. I went through the archway. It led to a long dark hallway. I had my gun at the ready for any trouble. We walked down the hall for what seemed to go on forever. We walked for about five minutes before we saw a light at the end of the tunnel. It was an artificial light as it was red. We prepared selves for a fight. Twenty feet away, we could see what was in the room. Cages. Cages as far as the eye could see. Most of them were empty. Except one. An egg the size of a toddler rested alone in a cage. The cage was left wide open.

Bossk asked the question everyone was thinking "What kind of creature could lay that?"

Anakin looked at if for a moment before responding, "I think it's an Ackley egg! It feels very similar to the one that died in the arena!"

That raised a new question from Jo, "Feel? But you didn't touch it."

Barriss rolled her eyes, "Through the Force."

"The Force?"

Barriss was getting annoyed by my sister's lack of knowledge, "How primitive is your world?"

That ticked me off, "Hey, to be fair, I didn't know anything about the Force until a day ago. And how does not knowing what 'The Force' someone primitive. Bossk, what do you know about 'The Force'?"

"Honestly? Very little."

"See?"

"Oh? Well how far has your world progressed in technology?"

Jo decided to speak up, "We have been to the moon more than once."

Barriss started laughing.

 _Sometimes Jo, your too innocent for your own good. Let's try this._

I reach into one of my pockets and pull out a phone. I tossed it to Barriss. She caught it, but looked at it curiously. The device had Anakin's and Padme's attention as well. Especially Anakin. Bossk recognized it right away.

"Your music player?"

"Not just a music player. It is a video player, a game system, a camera, a communications device, and a GPS. All wrapped up into a computer that fits into the palm of your hand."

They seemed to be greatly impressed. Barriss held it for a bit longer before handing it back to me.

"We call them cell what Boba told me, only rich people have something similar to this. But it's functions are extremely limited. Where I'm from, stuff like this has been made affordable and used by almost everyone. This specific phone is already outdated and it's more high-tech than yours. Does that make you people primitive?"

She didn't answer. She just looked down in thought.

Padme spoke up, "What are we going to do with the egg?"

Bossk spoke up, "Leave it. If it hatches it will cause more problems than they are worth. The diet for feeding them is expensive. Let alone keeping them contained is almost impossible."

Jo crouched to get a better look at the egg, "Are you sure we can't take it somewhere on Coruscant?"

Padme but in, "It's possible, but wouldn't the egg hatch by the time we got there?"

Barriss but in, "No. This egg was laid recently and they take on average a few months before hatching."

Jo looked relieved, "Then we would have time to take it to a world better for it?"

Padme agreed with my sister, "Of course, it would sit right with me if we didn't."

"Don't say I didn't warn you. They bring nothing but trouble."

I gave Bossk a friendly pat on his back, "Don't worry Bossk, they just want to take the egg somewhere else. Not to raise it like a pet."

"You Shepherds never cease to amaze me Aaron."

I shrugged, "Eh, it's what we do. Hey look! There is a door over here."

It was about ten cages away. Anakin chose to speak up, "Let's see where it goes, we can come for the egg when we are about to leave."

All of us agreed, we walked over to the door. It opened up to reveal a room with Elevator lifts. They were looked like they transported the cages we saw in the room we were in.

"Going up?" I whispered to Jo.

She starts to giggle. We walked onto one of the platforms to see where they would lead.

Padme spoke up as she press what we assumed was the up button, "I hope we find Boba soon. I've got a bad feeling about this lift."

It started to go up fast, causing some of us to lose our balance for a moment. Moments later, Anakin spoke up, "See Padme, nothing's wrong. It was about a minute before we made it to the top. Though it turned out we were looking the wrong direction as there was no door. But when we turned around we had the biggest shock of our lives. The slave 1 was there. But it was what was in between us and the ship.

Hundreds of Geonosians were going to and fro putting crates on other ships around the Slave 1. All of us didn't dare make a sound as they had not noticed us yet. That didn't work as one of the bugs dropped a crate. As he bent over to pick it up he saw us in the corner of his eye. He did a double take on us to see if we were really there. Nothing happened for a moment until Jo slowly waved her hand saying hello.

The bug started to do the same on instinct. He stopped himself short and alerted the others in the room with a loud shriek. Every eye was on us now. The Bugs started to screech in harmony. Half of the bugs flew off in terror. While the others stood their ground by aiming their guns at us.

I yelled to everyone, "Get to cover!"

And we all did just that. There were some crates in front of us that we his behind. Some of the enemy fire missed us by a hair.

 _If bolts from blasters can kill, I don't want to know what those large blasts will do. It's a good thing the blasts are slow, or we would be minced meat right now._

Bossk yelled out over the sound of the blasts, "Any ideas?!"

As he said that, I noticed an exposed container that the bugs were carrying. It seemed to be some kind of hazardous compound.

 _Maybe an explosive!_

"Does anyone have some kind of Grenade?"

Bossk yelled, "I have two thermal detonators!"

I was about to yell the plan, but that wouldn't be smart. Remembering that I had headset, I used it, "Bossk, can you hear me?"

He responded, "Yeah! What's the plan."

"I'm going to give you cover fire while you throw a grenade at an exposed container. You will know it when you see it. And after the explosion, have the jedi defend while the rest of us continue firing. You got that?"

"Yep!"

"Alright then! On three!"

I held my hand up slightly showing 3 fingers. I lowered them one by one. When I lowered the last one I sprinted from my cover. This surprised the bugs and caused them to take aim at me. I used my 1911 to fire a couple of pot shots at the buggers. One of the bullets made their mark on the head of the shooter. It collapsed to the ground lifeless. Still sprinting, I dived for cover behind a support column close by.

By the time I stood up I saw Bossk throw the grenade at the exposed container. He then yelled with a loud voice, "Hit the deck!"

I pulled back my head looking the other direction and covered my ears. The explosion that was made was so strong, that I saw some bug parts fly past the pillar I was behind. I peaked from the pillar and saw that most of the bugs were dead. Burn limbs a torsos of the bugs littered the floor near the blast.

The others looked up to see what happened as well. But all of the females, when they saw the sight, looked like they were going to puke. I squelched up a bit too.

 _I don't blame them. War is not for the faint of heart. And that is not a pretty picture to remember._

However some of the bugs started to get up from the blast. The Jedi wasted no time to charge at the enemy. As we were about to strike the bugs. The Slave 1 came to life. It made everyone stop. It rose up about 20 feet before turning our direction. Nobody did anything as it hovered over head.

 _Well, at least Boba Fett is doing fine. I wonder what he is-._

Before I could finish my thought, Boba fired the ship's guns at the bug force. He landed multiple hits on a few buggers. It had a similar effect to what the explosion did. The cannon fire caused many to scatter abroad. Giving us the real edge we need.

"Come on!" I said as I broke cover.

Picking up one of the bug's cannons on the ground, I laid down some fire. The others broke cover as well, firing blaster bolts right on their targets. The Jedi resumed their charge at the bugs. One by one, the bugs fell. Whether cut up by the lightsabers or blasted away by our guns we didn't stop until they fled or died. When the last one was gone. We all looked at what we had done.

 _Glad that's over, time to get what we came for. I hope Boba will take the news well._

"Everyone alright?" Anakin asked everyone with us.

We all said yes. But I wondered if I was.

 _How can I just brush off everything that has happened so far. I should feel something. Even my sister is taking it better than I expected._

Barriss couldn't stand the sight, "I wish we didn't get found. Maybe this could have been avoided."

Bossk started to walk through the battlefield and decided to speak up. However softer than usual, "Out of all of my fights up until today, I have never seen this much carnage in one place."

Padme spoked up as well, "I saw what had happened to my people and more. But what happened here is awful. Did it have to be this way?"

She looked away in sadness.

 _She has a heart of gold. I wish more senators back home took after her._

Anakin put his arms around Padme to comfort her, "It had to happen this way. We didn't expect this many bugs here. The bugs in the explosion died instantly. So at least they didn't suffer…"

The Slave 1 started to descend back to the ground. As it did. I thought back to Saturday mornings with my dad.

" _Jo and I have seen this stuff before."_

Everyone looked my way.

 _Oh no! Did I say that out loud?_

Barris asked, "What do you mean?"

"Well. Not in person. You see our world has had brutal wars in the past centuries. All from Civil wars, to revolutions, terrorism, and most of all World Wars. But within the last century, we have developed something call film. We have records of wars from all sides of conflict. We have seen a lot of them with our dad over the years. A lot of the records depicted stuff like this. Alot."

They didn't answer for a moment. Anakin then asked, "Why would you watch that. I mean, wouldn't you rather have done something else?"

"I'd like to think that my dad wanted Jo and I to learn about the world we lived in. Why things were the way they were. Or it could have been to learn how we can stop stuff like this from happening again. But enough about that. It looks like the Slave 1 is opening up."

Anakin perked up at that, "THE WHAT?!"

That made me laugh, "Hey don't look at me, I didn't name the ship. Bossk, do you know why it's called that?"

Bossk went back to being his old self, with a grin plastered on his face, "Not my place to say, though I hear how he got the ship is quite the tale."

Anakin seemed to accept this answer as he calmed down. But are attention was now on the pilot of the ship. Boba.

He looked the same as we left him. But he didn't look happy. I noticed he had a blaster rifle in hand. Jo spoke up, "Boba! Thank you for helping us with that. Are you alright-?"

Boba yelled, "Where is my dad?!" as he aimed the blaster at me.

This startled everyone.

 _In hindsight. I should have expected this._

I tried to calm him down, "Take it easy now Boba, your dad is fine."

Boba didn't falter, "Then where is he?!"

 _I need to keep his trust if I want him to be with his dad._

"Boba. What did I tell you on Tatooine?"

"He is dead! Isn't he?!"

He was shaking the Blaster at that question. Boba was doing what anyone would do, it showed that he really does love his dad.

"Boba! I promised you that as long as I am there and if it is possible I would make sure no family would get separated from each other."

Boba finished it quietly, "Even at the cost of your life."

He lowers the gun to his side and bowed his head, "What happened to him then. Why isn't he here. It's been hours… I thought I was… alone."

Boba was confused as to what was happening.

I started to walk up to Boba and tell him what happened, "Your dad is right now in the custody of the Jedi. They are going to decide what will happen to him. There's a chance that he can go free, but it may not happen. His odds will be better if all of us are there. I know it. And if it doesn't work out, there is a way you can see him. Jango made us your godparents, so we can try to find a way for you to visit him."

Boba thought a little before responding, "Alright, I trust you."

I sighed in relief.

"But who are these people?"

 _Right…_

The others reveal themselves to him. Starting with Anakin, "Hi my name is Anakin Skywalker. I'm a Jedi acting for guard detail for the trip to the Jedi Council."

Barriss went next, "My name is Barriss Offee. Like Anakin said, I am a Jedi acting acting as guard detail. But what he didn't tell you is that we are not full fledged knights."

Anakin took offence to that, "Hey! He didn't need to know that."

Barriss just smiled.

Padme smiled too and finished up the introductions, "My name is Padme, I'm a senator from Naboo and I will be providing the transport as nobody else is available to take you at this time. I hope we can get along."

But Boba decided to act aloof, "Ya that's fine."

Time to be a godparent, "Now Boba. Be nice. As long as we're your godparents you have to be more polite. Or I won't tell you any of my world's war stories."

"But-."

Jo butted in, "Boba!"

The kid sighed in defeat, "Ok. Sorry, Miss. Thank you for taking us."

 _It's a start._

"Alright then, Boba. The republic is going to impound the Slave 1. So you need to get your things. Take what you need and then some. Take something that will entertain you for the trip."

I then turned to Padme, "How long is the trip going to be to your world then Coruscant?"

"From here to my world, not long. About half a day from here. The trip to Coruscant might take a day an a half."

"Sounds like a big trip. How long do you think it will take to get your things on Naboo?"

She shrugged, "It depends what time we arrive there. If it's night, we can't get our stuff until the morning."

"Alright right then Boba, pack for a week. Just a worse case scenario."

"Alright Aaron."

"And Jo, did you leave anything on the ship? We should check just in case."

"Yeah, it might be forever before we get a chance to look again."

Bossk gave me a reminder, "And we need to get the thing Jango wants for you. And he wants me to give the other for Boba. He told me it's time. Whatever that means."

"Thanks, I almost forgot about that. If that is everything,then let's get on Board."

"Now hold up!"

It was Anakin who took us by surprise, "I will need to go on with you. When the council asks me for a debrief. How would it sound like to the council if I just let you all go in there alone."

 _Ah._

"I see what you are getting at. But if we did leave with the ship, Jango would have no chance. But you can come on anyway I'm sure."

I looked to Boba for permission, as it was his ship for the time being.

"I guess, just don't touch anything."

"I won't, I just want to look. I'm something of a Mechanic. So I like to learn about technology so I can improve my own."

Jo spoke up, "Like your arm?"

Anakin rolled his eyes while everyone laughed, including Boba.

Barriss and Padme stayed outside to guard the ship. While we entered the ship. It was just like when we left it. Anakin asked Boba a question that he had on his mind, "So did your dad teach you to fly?"

Boba was proud to answer that.

"Yeah, he taught me 4 years ago when I was ten. He lets me fly every now and then for practice. I hope to one day be like him."

 _Ironic._

"I think you are more than you know. Aside from being a clone of him."

Anakin perked up at this, "What."

Boba answer him, "I'm a clone of my dad. He told me when I asked him a few years ago. He said I was a true clone. So that made me his son."

Anakin understood Boba a little better now. He appeared to maybe even relate to him. Somehow I knew he did.

"Aaron! Boba! I found what Jango wants to give to you! And I can't believe it!"

We went to the room he was in. Which turned out to be the armory. Bossk was standing in front of a compartment that I Hadn't notice last time I was in there. The compartment cover had a weird emblem over it. It looked like a Gold shield with black flags waving in the wind.

Boba whispered, "The true Mandalorians?"

 _I guess that answer that. But what's in side? Bossk doesn't just lose his cool from what I know._

Bossk moves out of the way revealing the contents.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Armor. It contained two armor sets. They were made of metal and designed similar to Jango's armor. But that is where the similarity ends. The left armor set was smaller than the other. And it had a orange/Yellow, red and green color scheme. The armor also had wrist weapons and a "antenna" protruding from the helmets side. The armor held the same emblem as the one on the compartment. Right on the shoulder pad. The right one was just the metal colored. It had looked like it was never used. It didn't have any fancy technology like the other set. However it was a bigger size of armor. And the helmet was the same, except that it didn't have the "antenna". And it looked like it had more protection on the sides.

I was surprised to see Bossk walk back up to the armor and picked up the helmet of the metal one. It looked like his heart was going to stop on him.

"A-aaron. Do you know what this is?!"

"I don't. Different world. Remember?"

"R-right. Well, this is real Mando armor. The one Jango has is real. But this is Beskar! Mandalorian Iron!"

Boba's eyes became as wide as dinner plates.

"H-how did dad get it? He told me it was very expensive to get armor like that."

Anakin's curiosity got the best of him, "Really? I'm not really familiar with that kind of metal. What's so great about it?"

Bossk gladly answered, "It is one of, if not, the strongest metal of the known galaxy. It's very adaptable for anything. Specifically in this case, armor. I heard that it's impervious to even light sabers!"

Anakin smirks holding up his new one he acquired on the ship, "Want to find out?"

Bossk looked excited, "Go for it!"

 _Well that escalated quickly._

"Now wait a moment. Why would Jango give this armor to me, how did he get it, and why didn't he use it up until now?"

Bossk thought a moment, "Maybe he didn't want to appear flashy. It is only used by the most skilled of Mandalorians or at least people with potential. Jango fits that description a hundred times over. "

He laughed before continuing,"But again, the man is a mystery to me. And I have known him for a long time. But what I do know, is that it's yours now. What did he tell you up there anyway? Jango I mean. He said that I could ask you when you got what was in there."

"He asked me to join the True Mandalorians, and I accepted."

All eyes, save Jo, starred with amazement at me.

The bounty hunter gulped before asking, "What?"

"Yeah, he told me I passed what he would consider a Verd'goten. He said I got him back on track being a Mando. And he warned me on what happened to the rest of the True Mandalorians. He gave me a chance to back down. So, because he wouldn't ask me if he didn't think I could. I accepted the offer."

Bossk started to laugh, "You Shepherd's never cease to amaze me. Again. Well, congratulations on being an official Mandalorian!"

I stared at the armor some more. It did look very nice. I reached out to pick up the helmet. I was very surprised to find out that it was extremely light.

"Are you sure it's indestructible? It doesn't have much weight to it."

"I'm positive. He wouldn't keep it under lock and key if it wasn't. And it appears he is putting a lot of faith in you and Boba by giving you those armor sets."

Boba took his helmet and stared into to its visor. Nothing happened for a moment. Then his eyes started to water a little.

"D-did my dad plan to die?"

This confused Anakin, but Jo, Bossk, and I knew what he was talking about.

"I saw the navigation computer Bossk. It takes less than an hour in normal hyperactive to go from Tatooine to Geonosis. He lowered the speed down midway flight."

"No Boba, he didn't plan to die. He was prepared in case he did. Your dad wanted to conserve fuel so you could go anywhere you wanted. He only wanted what was best for you."

"THEN WHY DIDN'T HE SAY GOODBYE?!"

I should have expected this reaction.

"He didn't even let me know that he thought he was going to die. He didn't tell me 'I'm proud of you'. He didn't tell me anything!"

He threw his helmet to a side wall. And fell forward to the ground. Being only held up by his knees and hands. Tears started rolling down his face.

"Does he think I'm weak? That I can't handle something like that?"

Nobody dared to go forward. Anakin looked to the side contemplating himself, as it appeared. Bossk looked as if he didn't even know where to start. While Jo and I just watched unable to find a way to help yet.

"I guess I can't be a warrior."

This confounded me, "What?"

"Dad said a warrior shows no weakness. I shouldn't be crying."

Unexpectedly, my sister spoke up, "No, Boba! That's not true. Showing and having weakness are two different things. And so what if you cried In front of us. That's nothing. We're your family Boba."

Anakin was dumbfounded, "I am?"

Bossk laughed, "You are now."

Jo continued, "And besides, I'm sure not showing weakness only applies to enemies in context."

Boba thought for a moment, "I guess so."

Jo now had a smile and came closer to Boba to lift him back up. As she did, she asked a question, "Would you like to hear of a warrior from our world real 'quick'?"

"Uh, sure?"

"Long ago, there was a boy named David. He was around your age when he went into battle. The boy belonged to a nation by the name Israel. And at this time, the nation was at war with a group called the Philistines. Both sides camped from one end of a valley, to another.

And a challenge was brought to Israel. Each side would send a champion to fight. So whoevers champion won, the other side would become servants to the winner. It was agreed. But the champion the Philistines chose was a giant man named Goliath. Who was about 3 meters tall."

Boba was surprised by a human being that tall.

"Really?"

Jo nods her head, "And he was a very muscular man. So when the army of Israel saw him, they panicked and didn't bring anyone forward. Instead, they hid like cowards."

Bossk and Anakin were listening intently. Bossk made the question, "Did they not have guns?"

 _That would make an interesting twist for a book._

I shook my head, "Nope, this was a long time ago. Before gunpowder became a thing."

Bossk gave an "Oh" as Jo continued, "They challenged Israel for many days and the army would hide themselves. And that's where David came in. He wasn't even at the camp. David was back home attending to his father's livestock. But his brothers were at the camp however, and they were much older than he. Sometime after Goliath first challenged Israel, David's father sent David with food to check up on his brothers to see how they were. When David entered the army's camp, Goliath gave out his challenge again. David was surprised how their army was afraid to face him. And he started calling out the entire army for there cowardice. Eventually his brothers saw him and were mad that he was there. They confronted David, but David didn't stop. Eventually the king who was there heard what David was doing and asked to talk to him. Eventually, David convinced the king to let him fight Goliath."

Boba asked, "How?"

"Out of everyone, David was the only one willing to face him. David talked about things that happens to him. How he fought off predators from his livestock all by himself. Described full detail how he did it too. He said because God was with him then, Goliath would be no different."

It's seemed Jo's plan to calm Boba down was working. Boba was so enchanted by my sister's story telling, that he was less focused on his own problems. Even the tears that rolled down his face was all dried up. The kid started acting more like a kid when he impatiently asked,"Ok? Then what happened? What does this have to do with me?"

Jo laughed, "I'm getting to that Boba. Eventually, David fought Goliath. And won. He didn't have any armor. But he had God. And after that battle he would eventually become the king of all Israel years later."

Bossk spoke again, "That's sounds amazing for someone to start from the bottom to the top."

"But his life didn't end there. He had struggles and made some bad decisions. Decisions that cost him the life of family and friends. Even his some of his sons."

"What did he do?" Anakin seemed enthralled with this abridged version of king David's life.

I spoke up, "We can tell you all some other time. I think I'm getting what my sister is trying to get at."

I motioned for Jo to continue, "He was one of our world's greatest heroes. And his life's story doesn't shy away from the fact he cried and mourned. It would be crazy if he didn't. And he made mistakes. Like your father, I'm sure has."

Boba thought about what she said and replied, "I can see that now. I guess my dad only thought for my own good. But it still hurts, you know."

Jo then pulled Boba into a hug. Boba was shocked by this. But he didn't stop her.

"If you need a shoulder to cry on, you can come to me Boba."

 _Sometimes, I wonder how I was blessed with a sister like her._

"Remember Boba, your father isn't going to be gone forever. It's just goodbye… for now."

With that, Boba seemed to come to terms.

"Thank you. I don't know how I can ever thank you for taking me in."

I chuckled, "You can start by telling me how to even get started with putting on this armor."

With that everyone present broke out in laughs.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After a few minutes more. We all exited the ship. Barris and Padme looked as if they were having a blast talking about whatever. As we came down the ramp they turned our way and looks of astonishment came our way.

It wasn't a surprise to us as Boba and I were not the same as we went in. Instead we were garbed in Armor similar to Jango's. And Jo now had two shoulder guards as I didn't need mine anymore. I still wore my gun and my gear. Surprisingly, it was all a perfect fit. As we approached, I took off my helmet and said with a smile, "Let's roll."

 **End of Chapter**


	18. Chapter 18

WPRT CH. 18

 _Stepping on the Beach_

Jo:

Our crew made it back to Padmé's ship and we all boarded in a neat line.

Aaron, Boba, Barris, and Bossk all sat in the lounge area drooling over the new sets of armor, save for Barriss, and I followed Anakin and Padmé to the cockpit. I slumped back into one of the passenger seats as the ship lifted up off of the arena floor and blasted through the atmosphere.

After my heart stopped pounding and my stomach stopped churning from take-off, I looked at our keepers.

Anakin wasn't half bad looking, but he looked incredibly young in his uniform. His face was unlined and relaxed, as if piloting ships was part of his normal routine (I didn't know that it was). His hair was consistent in color, a dirty blonde. He had a rat's tail, braided, and to the side as opposed to the back. Of course, being nosy, I had to ask.

"Why do you have a rat's tail?"

"What are you talking about?" he asked.

"Your hair. It's all cropped short except that braid. Back on Earth, we call that a 'rat's tail.' You like it like that?"

"Well, as Barris said, we are both still technically padawans or apprentices. That's what the braid and hair is for. Once I'm knighted, I'll have more leeway as to what I can do with my hair. You get a good look at Obi-Wan's hair?"

I shuddered.

"Yes. Yes, I did."

"I am going to do everything in my power to make sure that my hair never looks like that."

"Thank goodness," Padmé murmured.

Then I was able to actually study her.

Her hair wasn't nearly as messy as it should be- considering everything that transpired within the last few hours. Her white outfit, though dusty, was still cute, though I didn't think much of her bare torso...okay, I was jealous of her flat torso. Her deep brown eyes and long thick lashes emphasized her beauty.

"So, how do you people know each other?" I asked, and automatically started kicking myself for starting small talk.

"We met ten years ago, actually," Padmé said with a smile.

"That's exciting," I said.

"It really was. I was the queen of my home planet at the time, and we were suffering at the hands of the Trade Federation. They had blockaded our planet, keeping shipments of food and other goods from getting in or going out. It was quite frightening."

"You were Queen of Naboo? Was I supposed to curtsy or something when we met?"

She giggled a little, taking some of the stress off of her face.

"No. I was elected. I was actually quite popular. I don't say that to brag, but to make a point. I was only fourteen years old, but I knew what I was doing. I selected my advisors carefully.

"Anyway, we needed help, so we contacted the Senate to ask for help. They sent two jedi, Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi to meet with the Trade Federation to maybe find out why this was happening. Unfortunately, the meeting did not go well, and they escaped to my planet's surface. They made their way to me and my entourage, helping us escape certain doom."

"They made it out of the fire-fight, but the hyperdrive was damaged, and they had to stop on Tatooine," Anakin picked up the story. "I was a slave, along with my mother, working for a junker, Watto. Qui-Gon, Padmé, Jar Jar Binks, and R2-D2 all came in looking for that part, and Watto had it. Unfortunately, all they had was Republic Credits, which Watto deemed worthless. So, instead they made a wager. Well, two wagers.

"The first wager was if Qui-Gon's pod won the race, then Watto would supply the part, and if Qui-Gon's pod lost, he would have to surrender the ship he arrived in. The second wager was if he won, he also got to take me or my mother with him when he left. Watto used his own cube. Red was my mother, and blue was me. The die rolled blue. Watto was angry, but he was convinced that there was no way that Qui-Gon's pod would win."

"Anakin was the pilot of Qui-Gon's pod. Against the odds, he won. And he went free, and we continued to Coruscant, where I appealed to the senate for help. It was denied. Thankfully, Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan, my handmaids, and guards were all willing to help regain control of the palace, and we made a successful appeal to the Gungans for help as well, who lead an offensive in the Naboo planes away from the palace in Theed."

"I ended up in space and taking out the command ship of the blockade on accident. R2 was a great help with that...a nine year old flying a full fledged weaponized ship was not ideal, but as I was already a pilot, it over all went very well, and it is a fond memory now...though at the time it was beyond frightening."

"In the hanger, we met a Sith warrior, and Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon engaged him," Padmé continued excitedly.

"Qui-Gon was killed…Obi-Wan defeated the warrior. Obi-Wan was then knighted and took me as his apprentice."

Anakin bowed his head respectfully when speaking of Qui-Gon's death.

"We took back the Throne Room, allowed the Jedi to burn Qui-Gon's body on our holy grounds, and then had a ceremony celebrating peace and the reunification of the Gungans and Naboo people."

"So that's how we met," Anakin finished.

"That's quite the adventure," I said with a smile.

"We didn't see each other again until a few days ago, because-."

I cut Anakin off and said, "Because of attempts made on Padmé's life by the Separatists. I've gathered that much information in the past few days. So, why is everyone so bent on taking you down, if you don't mind my asking?"

Padmé furrowed her brow and turned to me.

"The only reason I can think of is that I opposed the Military Creation Act. I honestly believed that we didn't need an army to protect us, and this is what it 'hath wrought.' I'm afraid that someone wanted a war so badly, that this would get me out of the way to create one. Who would want this but people that hate the Republic and the peace it stands for?"

"We are going to Naboo first, right?"

"Yes, we are," Anakin said.

"How long will we be there?"

"A day or two, depending on when we get there and how long it takes to tie the k- er, up loose ends," Anakin said.

"Okay. Well, is there any kind of...family activity that Aaron and I can do with Boba? I mean, since we are his family, we'd like to try and make a memory with him that he can tell his kids about someday."

"Well, where we are going has a nice, lovely beach that you can go to on a freshwater lake. I can arrange a picnic on the beach with the kitchen."

I smiled at the senator.

"Thank you, Padmé."

XxXxXxXx

After exchanging some more small talk, I rejoined the big group in the lounge area.

"What's the sitch?" Aaron asked.

"Well, as promised, we are going to Naboo, which will take about twelve hours. Depending on when we land, which for now is set for around mid afternoon there, will determine when we leave. It seems like there is more than just the couple things they implied to their friends."

"What do they expect us to do during that time? Sit on our rears and twiddle our thumbs?" Bossk asked.

"No. Padmé said there is a nice beach where we will be staying, and that we could have a nice beach picnic."

"I've never been to the beach," Boba said.

"I'm not so sure that I am comfortable with tomfoolery," Barris commented firmly.

"Are you _always_ this uptight?" Aaron asked, while giving her the evil eye.

"All work and no play, makes Jack a dull boy," I said smugly.

"I don't like the sound of that," Boba said.

There was a pregnant pause, before Aaron tried to revive the conversation.

"So, a beach picnic, huh? Steppin' on the beach DO DO DO DOOO!"

"Aaron, I don't think that that's quite what-."

"What's that?" Boba asked, eyes watching Aaron intently.

"It's from a show back home. It's about a sponge that lives in the ocean. There's an episode where he goes to the beach and sings that as he's walking along the sand."

"A show about a talking sponge?" Barris asked, rolling her eyes.

"Actually, Barris, it's not half bad, and quite enjoyable. 'A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men,' after all," I smiled.

Barris only humphed at that. Then, she opened her data pad and pretended to read. It was rather unconvincing.

Boba interjected with a question, "How did they get the sponge to talk?"

That question made me laugh inside. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would have to explain _SpongeBob SquarePants_. It's not something that can just be explained. One has to experience it to understand.

Aaron jumped in, "It a cartoon."

"Cartoon?"

"It's what we call animated videos, specifically moving drawings."

Bossk interrupted, "Oh! You mean like those educational HoloVids that the Republic broadcasts? Those are for babies."

I chuckled.

"In this case, far from it. While yes, the target is children, it is enjoyed by adults as well. The show has run for nearly twenty years, so people, such as myself, have grown up with him."

"That's highly irregular," Bossk said.

"It's just a shame we can't watch some while we are traveling," I said.

"Yes, we can," Aaron laughed.

I gave him my "what are you talking about?" look.

"Laptops. For homework."

"No Wi-Fi, no way to charge them, forget it," I mumbled.

"I may have some episodes on a flashdrive," he said, while giving me a winning smile.

"And no way to charge it after. We need to conserve power."

"Just let me, please?"

His puppy eyes won me over.

"Fine! But if we get zapped back to Earth and you didn't finish your homework and your professor gives you an auto-F, don't come crying to me," I said.

"You are too worried. Besides, it's either _SpongeBob_ or be bored for twelve hours," he said.

I narrowed my eyes.

"Maybe someone can help us rig up some way to charge our laptops."

I grunted as he pulled out his laptop.

"Boba, I have much to teach you," Aaron said while he lifted the screen.

XxXxXxXx

Aaron showed Boba and Bossk some of the _SpongeBob_ highlights over its twenty year run.

While Bossk and Boba were laughing it up, Anakin stepped in and watched for a little while. I don't think he quite understood, but I did see him crack a few smiles.

Barriss eyed the boys enviously, longing to see what the amusement was, but also too stubborn to cave to their antics.

While I listened, I tried to nap, but only drifted in and out for a couple of hours before giving up for while.

Anakin and Padmé switched places, and she tried watching _SpongeBob_ , but that didn't last long.

"I don't get why it's so funny," she said as she sat down next to me.

"You have to be dumb to like it. Well, not dumb...it's not quite the right word. We are looking more for...relaxed, maybe. Lower standards for humor, we'll say."

"Apparently much lower," she mumbled.

"So, how do you want to do this?" I asked.

"Do what?" she replied.

"We get to Naboo, sure you let Boba and our crew go for a picnic on the beach, but how are you going to keep us contained?"

"Barriss will help with that."

"And she's going to be able to handle all four of us alone?" I asked.

"Do you have a habit of wandering off and exploring?"

"Sometimes," I answered and grinned sheepishly.

Her brown eyes sparkled and she gave a smile of familiarity.

"Of course I end up in custody of people too much like myself."

"Back home, we refer to that as karma," I replied.

"Well, I can always ask the queen to assign some guards to keep tabs on you," she said.

"Wait, wait. If we PROMISE to be good, can we do a tinsy bit of exploring? I mean, we don't break anything or try to escape?

"While it's not wise, I trust you for some reason…."

I gave her my best innocent face, knowing full well that this only had a 50/50 chance of working.

"I suppose it's okay- If, you agree to try to make up with Anakin. I don't think he much cared for your joke."

"I will."

XxXxXxXx

After a few more hours, I finally approached Anakin alone.

"Hey," I said.

"Hey."

"I owe you an apology. I didn't know what to say to seeing you...erm...disarmed, and I panicked. I'm not much of one for social situations, nor do I like people in general. I'd much prefer to stay at home curled up in a blanket reading a book as opposed to an outing like a park or zoo. I just don't like dealing with the public. So, I'm sorry I hurt your feelings."

"I'd like to say it's okay, but that was tasteless."

"It was. I just sometimes have a hard time judging when to use dark humor and when not to, and obviously upon re-examining that situation, I should NOT have said what I said."

Anakin only ignored me.

"Well, then. I'll be seeing you," I said as I backed away.

Anakin only grunted.

 _Great. You don't even know him and you blew it._

XxXxXxXx

From space, Naboo looked similar to Earth, and for a moment, I was relieved of all stress. The familiar Earth tones made my heart flutter with love, but it did not last, and I remembered this was not my beloved home.

I shook my head and braced myself for landing.

That was the easy part.

We were met on the platform of the palace, and were greeted as we disembarked by Queen Jamillia and some of her advisors.

It was mid afternoon by the look of the sun.

Anakin and Padmé bowed to the queen, and all of us followed her example.

"Bringing back more people than you left with, Senator?"

"Well, erm, we had some unexpected happenings. I will explain them to you now, Majesty," Padmé explained as she and Anakin walked with the queen.

"Should we follow?" I asked Barriss.

"I don't know."

"Just stay right there!" Anakin called over his shoulder.

"We should just stay right here," Barriss said.

I looked at her and she was smiling a bit.

 _So she DOES have a sense of humor afterall._

"Can we play the dice game until they get back?" Boba asked.

"I don't see why not...Barriss?" I turned to her.

"Dice game?"

"Yeah, I have some D&D dice that we threw yesterday. Just to see who can roll the highest numbers. No real gambling or anything," I explained.

"What's D&D?" she asked.

"Oh, well, it's a game called _Dungeons & Dragons_ that we play back home. You create a character and go on adventures together. But certain movements or speech things need to be rolled to be successful. So, dice are that determining factor. High numbers win, low lose."

"So you were just rolling dice?"

"Yes," Aaron said.

"I suppose it's alright. Just keep it on the platform in plain view."

"I've got three of the d-20s. Do you or Bossk want to play?"

"I'm not interested," Barris said.

"I may as well give it a try," Bossk said.

I handed out the dice.

"Highest number wins," Aaron reminded Bossk.

"One...two...three...Pitch!" I said.

They rolled the dice across the landing pad.

"Ha! I won!" Bossk said after the race to retrieve.

XxXxXxXx

We did this for over an hour, and even Barriss got into it a little before the end, especially after the silly bets started up (cleaning weapons, cleaning freshers, loser misses dessert, etc.), and it all all in good fun.

Anakin and Padmé told us to round up our gear and meet them at the air-boat down on the river. It would take us to the lakehouse.

"Cool."

"And clean up for dinner. We will call for you when you need to come in to get ready. After you leave for the beach, do not return until I say. Anakin and I will be knocking some very important things out of the way. I know I said you could explore, and you still can, but you have to keep it out of the lake house until we say. Okay?"

I eyed her.

"No, you promised," I said with a strained smile.

"Okay. But you can explore the house, but you have to keep it off the back porch, okay? Anakin is going to try and help me find my...memory chip that I dropped."

"We could help you," Barriss said.

"We've got it. Besides, I also promised a beach picnic. And as Jo reminded me, I should keep my promises to the best of my ability."

"As you wish," Barriss said with a huff.

XxXxXxXx

The boat ride was rather uneventful. We made it alive to the house, Padmé took us to our rooms, and she told us to put on beach attire.

We had none.

Thankfully, Aaron and I each had shorts, which Boba said he had spare underwear, and Bossk said he did, too.

So, after a few minutes, we met Padmé down the hall, who escorted us to the beachfront.

Bossk led the way down the steps, happy for a chance to take a dip, Boba followed him, I was situated behind him, Barris was behind me, and Aaron behind her.

"Just trust me. I won't run away," he said when she tried to protest.

We walked down the marble steps and all stepped on the beach.

I was wearing my sleep shorts and a cami, and stepped off to the right when it was my turn.

Aaron cleared his throat and as he stepped onto the sand, he said, "Steppin' on the beach Do Do Do DOOOOO!"

Boba and Bossk burst into a fit of laughter at the ridiculous display. Barriss did her usual eye roll. I chuckled.

After things calmed down, our picnic was underway. There were some tables and chairs set out, as well as some lounge chairs, like one would find on Earth. Aaron had his phone in one hand and a small stereo in the other.

"Are you sure that you should be wasting your battery on music?"

"Don't worry. We will get something figured out with Anakin in that regard. You worry too much," Aaron said.

I scoffed as "Surfin' USA" blasted through the speakers.

"What is this?" Boba asked.

"This is the Beach Boys, Boba. He thinks he's being funny," I answered.

"Oh. That's the style?"

"No, that's the name if the band. The style is Rock'n roll. Specifically from the Sixties."

"The Sixties?"

"We have so much to teach you about are music."

Bossk butted in, "Well whatever it is. I. AM. LOVING IT!"

He gave us a very bemusing sight of him trying to dance to the music.

XxXxXxXx

I waded a little into the lake about an hour after we arrived. Barriss joined me after a while.

Aaron, Boba, and Bossk were taking turns to see who could run and then jump the farthest (Bossk was winning).

Barriss asked me some questions about our lives back on Earth, and I told her the truth on everything. There was no reason to lie to her about it, and we'd be telling the Jedi Council everything anyway.

"So, I want to know more about your god," she said after a brief period of silence.

"He's not our god. He is God. The God, but what do you want to know?"

"I don't understand it really, I know you say that He is God. But where does your belief in Him come from? You and your brother seem just as devoted in Him as any Jedi would be in the Order. Dare I say more than even most of the Order? So what makes you believe in Him. Does he have a power as that of the force?"

It was a very interesting question I had never considered I would be asked.

"I would say, because God can be seen everywhere. In nature, in man, in animal…He also loved us so much that He send His Son to Earth to die for us. Jesus, His Son, paid the ultimate price for us. His power is greater than 'the Force.' He has the power over nature and ultimate control over the universe, and there is comfort in that."

"How can there be comfort in having no control?"

"Because then I don't have to worry about the problems of the world that I can't control. We do have some control. I can choose to recycle my plastic bottle, I can control that. But, what about the people that don't, and then their plastic ends up in the ocean killing wildlife? I can't control that. I can't control other people's thoughts and opinions, so why worry?"

"I think I understand what you're trying to say."

"I'm glad."

I turned my gaze to the lake house and looked up.

A hooded figure was on the balcony.

"Umm...Barriss, please tell me that is a guard or something."

"I don't think so." she said, moving out of the water.

"Aaron, come on. You too, Boba and Bossk," I said.

No one put their shoes back or or anything. We all slunk slowly up the steps, leaving trails of sand with each step.

Once at the top, Barriss held out a had to stop us.

Then, she cocked her neck for me to peek behind the pillar with her.

The hooded figure stood there, as well as the two droids from the ship. Standing in front of the hooded figure was Anakin, and a woman dressed in a white silk dress and beaded and lace veil.

 _Oh my gosh, it's Padmé._

"What's going on up there?" Aaron hissed.

I turned back and whispered in a bad New York accent, " They're getting married."

"WHAT?!" he whisper yelled just as the lovers kissed.

Barriss stormed onto the porch, and I tried to grab her, but it was too late. We all managed up on the porch with them while the kiss lingered.

I finally got a hold of Barriss hand.

The kiss ended, and we were seen.

END CH. 18


	19. Chapter 19

WPRT Ch.19

 _Wedding Crashers_

Aaron:

All of us could only stare at the event that had just happened before us. Anakin had just kissed Padme in marriage. Thoughts ran through all of are minds for both parties. I heard them. All at once…

Jo's was of delight, _"EEEEEEE!"_

Boba and Bossk's reaction was confusion, _"WHAT!"_

Padme and Anakin's were of the same mind, _"NOOOOOO!"_

The "Priest" present didn't know what to think.

The droids were silent. (For obvious reasons.)

But out of all of them, the worst was Barriss.

It was pure unadulterated rage, _"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!"_

 _That gave me a headache! And it can get a lot worse if I can't defuse this situation._

"...So. Congratulations?" I said.

Three things happened. One, Barriss made a dash for the door. Two, Anakin and Padme yelled for Barriss to stop. Three, I tackled Barriss before she would do something drastic.

 _Even though I just did something drastic_. _I just knocked down Barriss while in my swimming trunks. Not one of my most prideful moments._

She started to wrestle herself free from my arms as I held her down.

The reaction everyone else had was utter shock.

I yelled at her, "Barriss! You need to calm down! You're overreacting to this!"

"He has betrayed the Jedi for his own desires! He may very well betray the Republic and become a Sith! I'm going to report this to the Council!"

Padme yelled out, "No! Please Barriss! Don't do that! He will be expelled!"

"Please Barriss! If the Senate learned of this affair, she could lose her position! She has worked hard for her people for over a decade! They need her now more than ever! Please! You've been a friend to me at the temple when others made me an outcast! "

But she wouldn't listen to them, "You will bring destruction to the Jedi and the Republic! How quick you forget the code Anakin! There is no Emotion! "

Barris then proceeded to jab me in the gut. I let her go from the pain inflicted. She sat up quick and ran for the door. But to the padawan's surprise, the door was now blocked by Boba, Bossk, and Jo. All of which were determined to not let her go.

"Get out of my way!"

Bossk hissed at her, "No! I may not know much about Jedi affairs. But I'm not about to let you make a mistake!"

"Mistake?! MISTAKE?! They made a MISTAKE! I'm going to correct it!"

"Please Barriss, let's talk this out," Jo said calmly.

"Shut UP! I can't stand you or your brother anymore! Ever since you all have shown up, you have made everything one big mess! You're all mistakes!"

The more she talked, the more the tension in the room increased.

"Then tell us Barriss! Just tell us what's wrong!"

I was not prepared for what happened. It felt like a power similar to what Dooku displayed, not just a day ago, shooting out from Barriss. But instead of using it to bring down rocks. It was used to grasp almost everyone on the patio by the neck. The only ones not affected by this display of raw power was Boba, the droids, the Priest (who was now freaking out), and me.

Boba saw they were choking, "Bossk! Jo! What's going-."

Boba stopped taking after turning to look at Barriss. His jaw hung low at the sight I would soon see for myself. Barriss slowly turned her body my direction. Her eyes were now an unnatural shade of yellow. And on her face was a sickly grin.

"Go ahead, oh _wise_ _Shepherd…_ tell _me_ what to do! Tell _me_ what our entire order should do! How we should just bow to the whim of an _outsider_ like yourself! You are ignorant of what the Jeda are! And you have the audacity to come here to judge us! The only love the Jedi can have is for the Order! Your all nothing but EVIL!"

 _I can understand why she is mad... But I didn't tell them what to do! And I didn't Judge them! I just said they were wrong! Not ordering them around! Right now she is going to make an even worse mistake than telling on Anakin. She is going to be the galaxy's most wanted for killing everyone here!_

Jo's face was turning blue, and she grasped around her throat to try and pry loose what was there. Anakin was trying to counteract Barris, and Padmé was in the same boat as Jo. Bossk's skin was lightening as well.

What I did next was all think of at the moment.

I smacked her, and the connection made a loud crack that sounded so exaggerated it could have been out of a _Three Stooges_ short.

It was a good thing Barriss was in arms length. I had to do something I never thought I would have to do. I had just backhanded a woman across her face! I wished I hadn't. But it brought results. Gasps of air came from those who were being choked. Boba rushed to Bossk's and Jo's aid. While the Priest checked up on Anakin and Padme.

Barriss slowly turned her head back my way. Her eyes no longer had the yellow color and now we're watery. It was like she was just in a trance.

"Wha-"

"SHUT UP!"

Everyone was was now better at this point and were nervous for what I was going to do.

"Grow UP! Only love for your Order?! Who is that man right there?! Is he not apart of your Order?! Yeah, I'd say it's safe to say he made a mistake. But where is _your_ love! As a fellow Jedi, should you not have that same love you say he doesn't have?! You just tried to kill him! You just tried to kill us!"

I moved closer to Barriss as she started to move away.

"You say I cast judgement. But what were you doing here?! You were going to condemn this man without talking to him. Without trying to bring him back! He is not dead! He can change! But let's take a look at what he did…'wrong.' Shall we?"

I walked up to Anakin, "Alright. Anakin, tell us why you married her."

"W-what?"

"You heard me… why?"

It had seemed that Anakin never thought he would ever have to answer that question.

"I don't-."

"Anakin, take your time. Explain it the best way you can. Please. Do it for your sake."

The man took a deep breath before answering.

"It really started a few days ago. It had been 10 years since I had last seen Padmé. I held some feelings for her ever since I had first met her. And it only grew as time passed on. When I saw her on Coruscant for the first time in ten years, all the memories I had of her came rushing back. Her compassion for her people. Her kindness towards me and others. And her unwavering spirit. It…"

Anakin appeared to be tearing up.

"It reminded, me of my mom…"

Padmé spoke up and put her arms around his body, "It's ok, Anakin. You have said enough."

"No. I need to do this."

He took another breath of air before continuing, "My mother died, a few days ago… no, not just dead. Killed. Murdered by Tusken Raiders! She was tortured for days. S-she ddddied in MY ARMS! " At this point he burst into tears. And Padmé brought him into her arms to calm him down.

 _Well._ _That answered my assumption I had for him being related to the Lars family. And he gave me the response I needed. He does love Padmé._

I waited a minute and asked, "Anakin, did the Order ever show you love like your mother had? Did they ever talk about your feelings?"

The man had calmed down at this point and Padmé now only had one arm around him.

"No. The code is against showing emotions. They lead to the darkside."

"But they would still talk about it to you. Right?"

Anakin looked depressed, "No. I only talked about it to Obi-Wan. But not that much."

 _Wow, this Order sounds insane. But what is it even founded on? Why do the do what they do? I need to dig deeper if I want to help defuse this situation._

"What is the code?"

He took a deep breath, "There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force."

 _That's the Code?! Anyone could interpret it anyway they wanted!_

"Ok let's break it down. That first part, what does it mean."

Anakin looked nervous

"That we have to let go of are emotions to truly gain peace in our minds."

"But how would you know?"

Bossk joined in, "What do you mean?"

"How can someone feel at peace without emotion? That sounds impossible. Peace comes after pain, after struggle. Like Peace after war."

"Uhhh…"

"What was the next part?"

"Is this necessary?!"

 _Barriss doesn't know when to stop._

"Yes. Apparently, you are blind to what you just did a minute ago!"

"What are you talking about?!"

Jo answered, "You tried to KILL US!"

Shock came across her face, "What? B-but how? I-I don't-"

She didn't finish. Barriss brought her hand to her head. The padawan looked as if she was losing balance. Jo came from behind to hold her steady.

 _I can't say enough how lucky I am to have Jo as a sister. Helping the person who tried to kill all of us not a moment before._

I turned back to Anakin, "Alright. Where were we? Something about knowledge?"

"Yes, 'There is no ignorance, there is knowledge'."

"Out of all of ones you have said, I get it. I get that one. Everyone is constantly learning and growing. Even fools can learn. But what happens if it makes you think you're better than everyone else who isn't like you? Barriss here is a prime example of that."

Everyone here could see that crystal clear. Every time we brought up our world, Barriss always seemed to find a way to make a jab at us. Barriss looked away. Thinking about her actions up to now.

"Let's move on."

I motioned for Anakin to continue, "'There is no passion, there is serenity'. It refers to attachment, Like family, or marriage. And how can we can be calm without them."

"Yeah, our lives would be much quieter without them. But it would lead to laziness. Boba, what do you think your life would be like without your dad? You would be bored to tears I bet, without seeing other worlds."

Boba shuddered at the thought, "Yeah! I would probably be on some farm doing who knows what! And I wouldn't have met any of you!"

 _I guess even Boba has his moments._

"Thank you Boba. See Barriss?"

Barris still appeared to be in a daze. She was however focused enough to scoff, "Oh please! That only proves the point. We are meant to be separate from the galaxy! Our attachments are for the Jedi as a whole. Any outside attachments can be used against us."

"You already said that."

"I-I did?"

"Yes. And you're right. Believe it or not. The Belief that Jo and I hold is very similar. We're meant to stand out. But we aren't to be made better than anyone else. A 'Man' once said, "You are the salt of the Earth; But if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is good for nothing except to be thrown out and be trampled underfoot by men."

Everyone, save Jo, were intrigued by this. Jo knew who I was talking about. Nobody said anything, so I continued, "So I understand where you're coming from Barriss. But being separate from a 'Galaxy' and being in it are two different things. You still have to relate with others. You can't make yourselves as if you are better. Because in the end, we realize we are all equally worthless. People from our belief try to be guides to a better way to live. To be examples. To show hope. From the sound of it, your Order keeps to itself a lot."

Anakin chuckled, "Yeah. If we're not doing missions. We're at the temple the whole time."

"Well, it's not a good thing. It can make your Order weak. And turn people against you. Interactions are needed to have good relations. And you can't do that without some form of attachments… Oh! As for attachments used against us. Evil does what Evil does. Padmé, I remember on Geonosis you said that your people had suffered. I'm guessing from war?"

"Yes. So to speak. It was really an occupation of the entire planet. It was over in a matter of a couple weeks."

"You love your people. Right?"

Padmé answered in a heartbeat, "Of course! I only wish I stayed to help my people. But the Jedi who saved us told me I would be of better help if I made an appeal for the Republic to help. But when it came to it. The only real help came in the form of the Gungans, two Jedi, and a young boy."

She smiled at that last part looking at Anakin. A large blush came across Anakin's face. Barriss looked away appalled while Boba appeared confused. Bossk and Jo saw Anakin's embarrassment and silently laughed to themselves. Making me laugh as well.

 _Children…. The whole lot of them._

I cleared my throat, "Right, well? You felt you needed to protect them, you had an attachment for them. Are you Evil?"

"Hold up. She is not a Jedi."

"True, Anakin, but she still has emotions. No more or less than anyone else. I will ask everyone this time. Is she evil?"

Bossk spoke up first. He seemed to be enthralled with this discussion, "No!"

Anakin said the same, "No!"

Then Jo, "No!"

Boba answered, "No!"

I looked to the 'Priest', "What about you, uhhh-?"

"It's Esau Abner. I have know Padmé her whole life, since she was a little child in school. She is the same as she was then as she is now. She is not evil."

"Alright then! What do you think droids?"

"Oh! Us?!"

R2 whistled at 3PO.

"How rude! Well, yes. Too answer for both of us. With what we know of her. She is a very kind women who is considerate of us droids. She is not evil."

At this point, Padme was embarrassed from all the praise, "Thank you. All of you."

At this I looked to Barriss. Her arms were crossed and her face looked between pouting and actual tears.

"Can you see that Barriss? When you think through your code, you find things that don't add up to what your Order does. I'm not ordering you to change. All I was saying was that things didn't add up. And they still don't. You can do what you want to do, but if your code doesn't have a solid foundation, it is doomed to fail."

She didn't make a move or sound.

Boba entered the conversation, "How do you know this stuff? It sounds like you have dealt with this kind of stuff before."

My mind flooded with memories I would rather forget, and I was nearly nauseated by the sudden impact, but they made me who I am.

"Let's just say I had to learn the hard way. I can tell you some time in the future. But for now, let's take care of the problem here and now."

The kid nodded his head as the others, save for Jo, wondered what it could have happened.

"I hope we're getting through to you Barriss. Cause this isn't just for Anakin's sake."

She looked away with shame.

 _Maybe what she did is coming back to her._

"Let's continue, it was something about chaos?"

"Right, 'There is no chaos, there is harmony.'"

"So do they mean as an Inward or an outward thing?"

"The Jedi are meant to keep the Peace, not cause destruction. Just to bring Balance."

"And how do you keep the peace?"

"By keeping Order throughout the Galaxy by doing missions to save people from mercenaries, slavery, and kidnappers. Even to prevent conflicts from happening."

 _Well that turned out well for them._

Bossk spoke up, "Except the one that just happened. Right?"

Anakin sighed, "Yeah…"

"So then you're police officers?"

"No, not exactly, Jo. We don't necessarily patrol the galaxy. Just to go where we are called."

"Like policemen."

Anakin just groaned. Jo seems to not have a lid on her mouth as of late and was driving Anakin mad.

"Sorry..."

"No… I suppose your right in someway. The difference is that Jedi have the Force, and it can be a dangerous tool in the wrong hands. That's why we need to have a calm mind. To better control it."

"I see. So your Order is there to try to hold back misuse of Force, because things like anger can get out of hand? Like choking?"

Barriss looked away more so than before. The question really seemed to work for Anakin as well. After all, he had killed raiders not to long ago in anger, but he was unaware we knew.

"I mean, I personally don't see anything wrong with anger. But if it makes you want to truly murder people, then it needs to stop. That's just my opinion. Like I said before. Good comes with the bad."

Barriss spoke up again, "But anger only leads to destruction!"

"You're right. Anger destroys. It can break relationships and tear up lives. But it gives a chance to fix or make something better. Sometimes anger is necessary. What reaction should people have when they are pushed around too much? When a nation is attacked by a foreign power, do they brush it off with a 'slap on the wrist?' No. I have never heard of a nation like that that lasted long. A strong nation would demand justice. Anger can be righteous. But it's just when it goes beyond the point of it's justice that it loses its righteousness. But there are other ways to vent Anger. If you just bottle it in, it can hurt you and others."

I looked away from the group as a sour memory came to me, "Believe it or not, as a kid, I got easily emotional about a lot of things. It made people want to avoid me. So having too much is bad as well. Eventually, I learned to put reins on them. But I did it to the point where I didn't show them or care to share them with even my parents. And one day I blew up at school on a kid who I didn't even know."

I could still remember the day as if it were yesterday. Jo shuddered at her memory of the event.

I turned back to the group and continued, "Why it happened or what fueled it didn't matter. What did matter is controlling emotions and feelings is completely different than bottling them up."

Anakin looked upset,"And how do you do that? I have tried to let go and couldn't."

Padmé put her arms around Anakin's waist to comfort him which seemed to work. But Barriss was growing more uncomfortable with what was happening.

"You talk about it. Explain in full detail to family or friends. But your Order doesn't allow that. Does it Barriss."

She was getting angry again. But at least it wasn't towards Anakin and Padmé.

"Now, I guess we're on the last part?"

Anakin cleared his throat, "Yes. 'There is no death, there is the Force.'"

"And how is that?"

"When we die, are spirit becomes one with the Force. And then we would become part of the Universe."

A few questions came to mind. Though I only asked the most prominent ones. "And how can people use the Force for evil if the Jedi are a part of it when they die?"

Anakin and Barriss' eyes widened at the question.

"What are you trying to say?!"

Barriss was a real emotional rollercoaster today.

"That maybe your Force is not so united as you think. It seems too divided. Is it one in the same? If it is the same. Then wouldn't that mean that your own Order works against you?"

"How dare you mock the Force!"

"Again Barriss, I'm not mocking it. I am asking a legit question."

She was angry and confused...

"Have you been told directly by the Force what it is?"

Barriss seemed to falter for a moment.

"W-what do you mean?"

"You seem adamant about the Force. But has the Force ever spoken to you? Did it ever tell you to do what you do as Jedi?"

They didn't respond. But their silence said it all…

But then Anakin spoke up, "Well it gives us prophecies every so often."

"That's all well and good. But those aren't orders."

Anakin accepted that response and went back to thought. Neither Jedi could come up with an answer. It went on for about a minute more before I spoke up again, "If the Force never told you to do things a certain way, then how can you say what your doing is right. Maybe you know an aspect of it. But not all of it. You don't have a clear picture unless it speaks for itself. If Dooku could still hold power in the Force when he fought, then I'm sure it was not the Force you know. You say he is a sith because he uses the darkside. You give it a name because it's not the same as what you use. How can it be the same Force?"

Anakin spoke up again, "Well, when you put it that way it sounds like they aren't the same. But the Force is a balance between Light and dark. Neither can exist without the other."

"'A house divided against itself cannot stand.'"

Jo held her mouth laughing…. She was thinking about a tall man with a tall hat. It made me laugh inside a little.

 _But she forgets that Abraham stole that from the Bible._

By now, the reading minds thing didn't shock me anymore as it happened so often. So…. Natural. But it was making me feel a little tired.

Boba spoke up again, "A house what?"

"Divided against itself means that a nation, or a home can't fight against itself without being destroyed in the process. It happens to families if parents don't get along. Most of the time it leads to separation of said family. And as for a nation, it could turn into civil war. And I don't think I need to explain that part to you all…"

The Jedi and senator knew too well what I meant.

"So what I'm trying to get at is maybe your Force isn't so united as it is made out to be. And having balance doesn't mean that it's the same entity. Light is not the same as dark. Love is not the same as hate. Life is not the same as death… But one requires the other to exist. And Finally, if the Force never told you to do the things you do. How can you say what your doing is right?"

 _Well that took awhile, but we got through it…. I think. Now it's time to bring it home._

Barriss stopped me from doing so…

"Well, are you happy now?! Haven't you wasted enough of are time with your useless babble? So far what you have done still hasn't changed anything. Anakin still committed a crime against the Order! He will be brought to the Council!"

Everyone, save for Bossk and I, moved a little back after her outburst. Bossk wasn't going to let her pass and we weren't about to back down. Her power could be felt just like before. Right before she started to choke people. But it wasn't the same. Her sights were on me.

Jo grabbed Barriss' wrist tightly and whipped her around. Through clenched teeth, Jo said, "Dont. Touch. My. Brother."

I turned the attention back to myself.

"Really? After everything we had just discussed, you still don't get it. What backing does your code have. If it's true with your Jedi, should it not be true with people who don't have the Force like you do? Wouldn't it work for everyone if the only difference was that you have more control over it? You treat your Code as fact. If it's designed for having control of emotions, shouldn't everyone do that?"

"What say does an outsider like yourself have! This is getting us nowhere! I am through with this!"

She turns to leave and proceeded to stare up at Bossk. His face showed nervousness. But he would not budge...

" _ **Hold it Barriss!"**_

She actually stopped to my surprise… I could feel something in her mind.

 _Was it… fear?_

I hadn't thought I yelled that out loud…

Whatever I did It worked for our advantage.

 _I wish it didn't have to be this way. Maybe if Barriss didn't come with us. This whole argument wouldn't have happened, but now I have no choice. I'm going to have to play my trump card. Maybe then she can really see what she had done._

"Go ahead and turn Anakin in," I said calmly.

Everyone's minds stopped working for a second…

The first thing to come out of everyone's mouth was one word.

"What?"

"You know what I said Barriss. Go ahead and turn him in. Take him right to the council. Go ahead and seal his fate. You can have all of the time in the universe and we won't stop you."

Anakin and Padmé's hearts started to race with fear. Jo mouthed to me 'What are you doing!?'

Ignoring her, I started to move closer to Barriss and look her dead in the eye. She seemed afraid of what I was going to say…

"But riddle me this: Can you convict this man before the council after what **you** have done?"

"W-what?"

"Remember what I said earlier Barriss? I said that the break down of your code wasn't just for Anakin's sake but for yours as well. If you can remember correctly, **you** used **your** angerto try to kill some of us here. And if Anakin is going to be expelled for marrying a woman that he loves, what will your Order do to you if they found out that **you** attempted to kill **your** charges and fellow Jedi."

Her worst fears came to life before her as she put together the pieces… tears leaked from her eyes.

"If Anakin can't change due to your code, what hope do you have?"

It seemed her whole world was breaking apart. With as sudden show of strength, Barriss moved her arm straight into Bossk's gut. A gasp of air shot out of the Trandoshan's mouth as Bossk moved to the side, cradling his stomach. This gave her a chance to get away. Which she did and not a moment too soon. Nearly everyone was ready to go after her.

"Hold it!"

Everyone running to get her stopped.

Boba spoke up, "What? Why?"

"She won't tell the council about Anakin. Not now anyway. Let me talk to her. She won't go to far."

 _I think._

Boba spoke up, "Aaron?"

I quickly reassured him, "It alright, she is not as angry as she was. She just seems… lost. Please let me try something first. Then you all can come and find us."

They didn't like it, but they were not going to stop me.

Boba, however, still wasn't fully convinced, "Please be careful, I don't want to lose family again."

Jo put a hand on Boba's shoulder, "Don't worry, Aaron wouldn't do it if he didn't think he could."

This did little to ease him, but he still agreed nonetheless.

I turned to leave, but I was stopped by a voice, "Wait."

I was surprised to see that it was Esau who had something to say.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to thank you what you have done. It's given me a lot to think about. It was a much needed perspective that most don't have."

Padmé spoke up, "I am so sorry for what has happened Mr. Abner. It wasn't apart of the plan for them to show up. Please stay longer so I can pay you more for what happened."

The man held up his hand.

"That won't be necessary. I was paid for marrying you to your husband. What happened was an accident that was beyond your power to control. If anything, I was already paid more from what happened."

The priest turned back to me, "I hope you don't mind if I use some of what you said in the future."

I smiled, "Be my guest."

I started to sprint towards the door with a wave of my hand.

"Lord willing, I'll see you all later."

I smiled.

 _Hadn't said that in a while._

Quickly, I ran back the way we came when we entered the house. As I made it to the beach, I switched to walking. I took note of the sun as it was about to set. I needed to look for fresh footprints. Sure enough, I had found some at the base of the steps. The tracks led away from the ones we made not to long ago. I started to follow them and did so for about 10 minutes. It seemed she had a good running start. Then, the tracks started to have less of an impression.

 _She must have stopped running at this point._

I noticed some tall rocks along the beach. And the tracks ended right at them. I started to walk faster, hoping I would find a clue as to where she went next. But to my surprise, I heard crying. Not a loud crying, but crying all the same. I started to look around the boulders until I found her by one closest to the water. Barriss was resting her back on the rock. Curled up with her arms around her legs and head buried in them. For the moment she didn't know I saw her. I decided to wait for a bit before I moved closer.

She wept for a couple more minutes before she started to calm down. It was now or never. I made myself known by slowly leaving my cover and walked up to the base of the rock. It didn't take long for her to know I was there.

She was still upset, "Have you come to gloat?"

"What?"

"Congratulations, you caught me. I suppose you're going to blackmail me now to not say a word to the council. I hope your happy…"

This caused me to sigh, "Is that what you think?"

At this point my back was now to the rock resting. "Barriss, I meant what I said back there on the patio."

Barriss looked up confused by what I said. Her eyes were still watery, and dried streams of tears were still visible across her face. "What?"

"I said we wouldn't stop you. To me and my sister, blackmailing someone who isn't an enemy is wrong. Our belief is against that kind of thinking."

"But then, why?"

"Barriss. It's because you have one thing a lot of people don't have."

She stared at me, wondering what I was getting at.

"You have a good conscience Barriss."

This didn't seem to answer her question. She needed more. "I don't understand. What does that have to do with any of this?"

"Everyone has a conscience. But not everyone listens to it. It's a moral compass. And morals can change. You want to do right. So I know you won't tell on Anakin. You now see that you're just like Anakin, like Bossk, like Boba like Jo, like Padmé, and like me. It would be hard not to see. Honestly, I wish more girls back home were like you."

She was taken back by that last comment, "O-oh."

Barriss looked down, "But what am I supposed to do? How can I let this go?"

"You don't."

She seemed to be getting frustrated again, but quickly calmed down. "Why?"

"I would think, if you still believe what Anakin did is wrong, you would need to remember what points we made and do some investigations in your Order. Try to find a counter argument."

"And what if I don't find an answer?"

"Then you would have your answer."

"...Right."

We didn't talk after that for about 5 minutes. The sun was now down completely. And the sky was full of stars. It was like an endless sea. Nothing looked familiar. Nothing.

"We really are lost…"

Barriss was confused, "What?"

I sigh, "Right, you don't know. Well to sum it up, Jo and I are lost. We have no way of returning to our homeworld. Or at this point anyway."

"What do you mean, don't you have a ship then? Did it crash?"

"No. There was no ship."

"Then what happened?"

"Well, we woke up in a desert…"

I proceeded to explain everything. Barriss ask a question here and there. Like "What's your planet like?" And "What's a spring break?"

When I told her are planet had almost 200 different nations, and over a thousand different cultures, she flipped her lid. To use her words, she said, "That's like our galaxy rolled onto one planet!"

It appeared after that point she got more invested in what I said about my world. Eventually, I finished up explaining our world and what we were doing before we got into this mess in the first place. The "how" was the only part we couldn't explain or understand in the first place.

"So let me get this straight. You were camping in a woods 'close' to home. And all of the sudden you remember a bright light for a moment? Then next thing you know. The two of you were head face in sand on Tatooine?"

"Ya, it wasn't easy. Both of us were scared we were going to die in a middle of a desert on a foreign world. We were lucky enough to be going the right direction. And to be honest, the two of us know very little about how to travel in desert aside from basic things from books and videos. That was my first real time in an endless sea of sand."

I take a deep sigh, "So far everything has been luck that we hadn't gotten shot or cut up too bad. Were lucky that we only have a few bruises and some tans. I don't think that it was random chance that we came here. I mean, if we were meant for this, couldn't we have done more? If I had acted sooner… couldn't we have saved some more people? The only thing that runs in my mind, over and over again, is, 'Can I do this?'"

Barriss was dismayed by what I had just said, "What are you saying?"

My back was still to the rock as I sat down, and I told her my thought, "I could have saved that kid from being beaten to death, I can only imagine what's happening to the rest of his family now. I know we saved them twice. But it doesn't make up for the fact their son is gone. And I'm here wondering what my family is doing right now."

Barriss finally realized what I was getting at. She didn't say anything and let me continue, "Are we dead to them? Are they having a funeral for us right now? Up until this point, I chose not to think about it. I needed to put it aside for my sister and the others. Now that things have died down… I don't know if I'm strong enough…"

After a few seconds of silence, the padawan sat up, "I'm sorry you feel that way. But after all you have you have done, I don't see how your letting that get to you. Your strong enough to make it this far."

I was shocked by Barriss' encouragement. "Really Barriss? A compliment from you?"

Her jaw dropped and she turned away with a pout. It was a sight to see. I started to laugh a little and said, "Thank you. Barriss."

She sighed and came over to where I was and held out a hand. I gladly took it and hoisted myself up.

I cleared my throat, "I guess we should head back. The others are probably looking for us by now."

The young woman moved away while holding her arm, "I think I'm the last person they want to see."

"It's alright Barriss. All you have to do is apologize. That's the first step of forgiveness."

She started to giggle.

"What's so funny!?"

"That sounds like something Master Yoda would say."

That caused me to clear my throat, "Young Padawan, mocking me, are you?"

The said Padawan covered her mouth laughing. Through her hands she spoke, "I shouldn't have said that. But…"

She couldn't take it anymore when I said, "Laughing stock, am I? A punishment, you desire?"

The Jedi couldn't contain her laughter anymore and put down her hands roaring in laughter. Not a moment later, she snorted. In which she brought her hands to her mouth again. Seconds later, both of us start to laugh harder than before. After a minute we finally calmed down and I let out a long sigh, "Well, let's get going…"

"Right..."

Begrudgingly, she started to walk with me, still nervous to how the others would treat her. We walked for about five minutes before we could see the "House" in the distance. Although, are attention was not on that. We could start to see the silhouettes of people in the distance.

 _Looks like they're right on time…_

Another minute passed before they were in clear view. As we got closer, we slowed down. Both parties stopped a good distance from each other. Barriss hung her head low to the side. Away from the others. The others were none worse for wear. Anakin and Padmé were nervous as well. With Anakin looked down and rubbed the back of his neck.. Padmé looked on ahead at Barriss, hoping she was alright. Bossk and Boba were another story. Both were mad and stared right at the young woman. It did little to ease the tension in the air, but it was to be expected. Boba was tapping his foot waiting impatiently for her to say something.

And finally, Jo was looking at me. We each gave each other a look and nodded at what was about to happen.

I cleared my lungs, "Go ahead Barriss, tell then what you want to say…"

She now started to look up and didn't try to hide her emotions when she spoke.

"I regret what I said to you all back there on the patio. You were right, Anakin. You are a friend and I didn't try to listen to you. I was just so shocked that you would do that. And Padmé, I'm sorry that I treated you like that. You of all people don't deserve what I said and did to you."

The newlyweds were amazed by her proclamation. Both were now staring right at her, as if she had grown two heads. Barriss continued nonetheless,

"Bossk, I'm sorry what I did to you as well. I hit you pretty hard in the gut. Not to mention choking you along with everybody else…"

The said Bounty hunter crossed his arms. Boba shortly followed suite.

"Nothing I can say could make up for what I did. I was… scared. Confused. I think I still am."

Bossk's face seemed to soften slightly at that last remark. But the kid's face remained the same.

Lastly, the Jedi in training turned to my sister. Barriss seemed to have a harder time speaking to Jo.

"Jo, I can't tell you enough how sorry I am. I said you and your brother caused nothing but problems. But, I was wrong. The prejudice I held towards you got the better of me. Had I known you were lost in space, maybe I would have not looked down on you so much. But you were right to not tell me. If any of that information gets out to the wrong people, it could be disastrous for your world. The fewer who know the better."

Jo was now on the verge of tears, "Barriss, I'm sorry we didn't tell you! We were going to! But we figured it would be better for us if we didn't have to repeat telling are _plight_ to everyone! We're sorry!"

As Jo said her last bit, she walked up to Barriss and pulled her into a hug. Barriss's eyes started to water up as well and said, "Why, why, why would you forgive me so fast? I was mean to you. I tried to kill you. A-and y-you a-are saying s-sorry to me?!"

"Because we all get mad at some point and make terrible mistakes. I have made some too. Everyone has…"

At this point both said nothing as Barriss cried in her arms. It went on for a good while before she calmed down.

The touching moment came to a halt when Boda cleared his throat,

Everyone's attention was on him. Barriss realised she forgot about the kid.

"Oh, right. Sorry Boba. I guess seeing me use my powers is quite scary. Can you forgive me?"

Boba only replied with a huff and walked away.

Jo yelled out to the boy, "Wait Boba, come-!"

I put a hand on Jo's shoulder, "It's alright Jo, let him go."

Confusion came cross my sister's face, "What, but shouldn't we try to get him to accept her apology? Shouldn't we do what we did on Geonosis?"

"No, this is different when Boba shot off Padmé on Geonosis. He has a logical reason for what he did. If he does forgive her, it'll have to be on his own terms."

My sister didn't like it. However, she decided to accept it. Barris looked down in shame at her own actions. I needed to bring her out of it.

"Don't worry, he'll come around eventually. He is a kid after all."

She accepted my reply with a shake of her head. She looked up to the others waiting for their reactions. Anakin answered for both Padme and himself, "We forgive you Barriss. And it's not as if it wasn't partly our fault. If not, all. We were the reason that it happened in the first place. So. Will you forgive us?"

"Yes! I have! Thank you. For being my friend, both of you."

Last but not least, it was Bossk turn to give his answer. The Trandoshan, was pretending to be aloof. Looking up in the air to the side. His arms were still crossed. He was taping his left foot in a joking way. After a few moments, he gave his response, "You know, I'm not a fan of this sappy wishy washy forgiveness thing. But I will humor you and say…. Yes."

Barriss had a look of relief.

"I only have one thing to say to you…"

He made us wait a few seconds for effect.

"Did you have to hit me so hard in the gut? I think something popped."

Once Bossk's comment registered in their minds, everyone present broke out in fits of laughter. It seemed we all needed something like that to cheer us up.

 _Maybe things can get better from here. Though something we could use right now is some food…_

And speaking of the devil, Padmé spoke up for our plight.

"Well, it's getting late. And we aren't having that beach picnic this late. How about we have dinner with my family?"

All of us, save Padmé, looked at her confused. Anakin scratched his chin and said, "Uhh Padme? I don't think you can drop something like this on them this way."

She laughed and said, "Actually, when we first landed, they contacted me to see how things were going. I told them what we were doing and they invited all of us. You see, they were going to host a celebration at their home with some of their neighbors. But, all of the neighbors cancelled at the last minute."

Bossk interrupted, "What was the celebration for?"

Padme waved it off, "Oh nothing really. They have one every now and then to have everyone spend time with each other. Anyways, they invited us to come for dinner at their home. I had told them possibly. Though now I think I can tell them yes. If nobody has any objections?"

Everyone seemed to be in agreement. However, something still needed to be done.

 _It's the most logical thing for them to do right now…_

"We will go Padmé. On one condition."

Everyone looked at me wondering what I was trying to do.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

We were now back in the city area near where we landed. All of us had a tired look from a long day. The hunger we felt was now kicking in as we dragged our feet to the door of the house Padmé brought us too. The said woman brought her hand to the door and knocked. After a few moments, the door opened up to reveal an older woman. A smile grew across the older woman's face and she said, "Sweetie!"

And she reached out to hug Padmé. However, Padmé looked less as ecstatic. Though she accepted the hug gladly. The woman who could only now be confirmed as the mother looked at The rest of us.

"And guests!"

Padmé drawled her speech, "Hi, Mom."

"Oh we're so glad to see you! The council contacted us about what had happened to you, we were so worried. But, now that your safe, things can finally settle down… Padmé? What's wrong?"

Padmé looked more upset than when she was hugged.

 _It's understandable. This is not going to be easy for her or her family._

The daughter finally broke the ice, "Mom, we need to talk."

 **End Chapter**


	20. Chapter 20

WPRT CH. 20

 _Silence Is Golden: Duct Tape Is Silver_

Jo:

After Padmé told her parents (who introduced themselves as Ruwee and Jobal) and sister (who introduced herself as Sola) about the wedding, they still asked us to stay for dinner. We sat at a large round table, and Padmé's brother-in-law, Darred, and nieces, Ryoo and Pooja, were also sitting with us. It almost looked like an odd version of the Knights of the Round Table

The tension was thick, and dinner was mostly consumed in silence.

"Water," Bossk said timidly.

"What?!" Ruwee barked.

"I just asked for some more water," Bossk said.

"Oh. I'm sorry."

Ruwee signaled one of his staff, and they refilled everyone's water glasses.

I picked at the spinach-like plant and occasionally took a sip of water, but I was too afraid to commit to eating, but someone had to say something.

"So, uh, Ruwee, Jobal, how did you two meet?" I asked.

"Our mothers were close friends, and so we grew up together. They were the most surprised we fell in love, I think. We immediately left home and helped establish this village," Ruwee answered.

Jobal nodded, taking a sip of wine.

"Padmé, sweetheart, why didn't you tell us you were falling for this boy? Just a few days ago, you said you weren't."

We outsiders were shocked, and Barriss looked as if she were going to go into a fit. I put a hand on her leg.

"And Dad, that was true a few days ago, but we almost died, and that showed me that denying my feelings could only make the situation worse. Pretending that I didn't love Anakin was just going to make me miserable in the long run."

"You and Anakin got _married_?!" the two little girls squealed.

"Girls, this discussion does not leave this group. If anyone found out, it could get Anakin and Padmé into a lot of trouble. Understand?" Sola said sternly.

"Yes, Mama," both girls said quietly.

The stillness came again, and we could hear C-3PO and R2-D2 chit chatting elsewhere.

We had all been given a chance to clean up and be presentable to the Naberrie family, and Aaron and I took the opportunity to wear the clothes we wore for our presentation to Count Dooku. Boba put on a clean outfit, and Bossk was wearing regular clothes. We had assumed he didn't have any, but he surprised us. Barris was wearing something Padmé had shown her and helped her pin. It was a lovely purple dress that exposed some shoulder and a very small portion of skin around her midriff. Her hair was pulled into a simple knot. Aaron glanced at her a few times.

I went back to picking at the food, and hoped someone would break the silence.

"Ruwee, I promise to take good care of her. She is a special lady, and I've known that for years. If I had any inkling this was going to happen, I would have gone through the proper channels and asked for her hand from you first, but as it is, we are short on time, and if any action were going to be taken, it needed to happen when it did. We must leave in the morning to go back to Coruscant. We are expected to be there in light of the events on Geonosis."

"You really think this...skirmish will lead to war?" Darred asked.

Padmé nodded.

Jobal and Sola gasped.

The girls were too young to understand, and asked to be excused.

Sola reminded them of their promise and let them leave the table.

The girls' happy laughter mingled with the beeps and whistles of R2, and C-3PO scolded them for playing so loudly. His scolding was louder than the children's playing.

I excused myself and found the droid.

"Look buster, you are being louder than the kids. Let them play."

"But-."

I held up my hand.

"Silence is golden; duct tape is silver. I have some in my pack, and I'll use it, so help me."

The protocol droid nodded and I went back to the table.

Conversation had begun, and the marriage discussion was all but entirely forgotten.

"Will they be calling for galactic enlistment?" Ruwee asked.

"No. Someone ordered a clone army behind the Republic's back. They saved us back there. I see now that I was foolish and too confident in politics. I was going to vote 'No' on the Military Creation Act," Padmé said guiltily, with her face in her hands.

"You didn't know. You couldn't have known that this was in the works," Sola said.

"All governments need a military to protect what is theirs," Aaron said. "The trick is to not use that military to conquer others to create an empire."

"Why would we need an empire?" Anakin asked.

"You don't. But absolute power corrupts absolutely," I said.

"That's why we have avoided creating a military, and Cordé died so I could cast my vote against it. I was willing to die for it," Padmé said.

"It is not your fault. You weren't the only one to oppose it. We have an army now, and I suppose that is what counts. The Senate and Jedi will probably work together to appoint military leaders and how to handle it. The Senate guards will receive more special training to make sure that you and your colleagues will be safe," Anakin said. "The Jedi will not back away just because they are keepers of peace. We are just as committed to defending the galaxy and the Republic as the Senate."

"The Separatists as you refer to them, wanted to stir the pot- or were at least willing to, and I doubt Dooku is at the helm. Someone else is pulling the strings," Aaron said.

"I can't think of anyone else who would be so happy to see something like this happen," Padmé said while shaking her head.

"That is a mystery for another day. For now, the main focus on the Senate will be 'war were declared,'" I said gently. "There will be no choice but to proceed, and you can't be going into this all willy-nilly. The Senate and military leaders will have to be just as cold and calculating as the enemy, and they have robots. They aren't alive. If the Republic uses the clones, they will be throwing warm bodies, lives. It isn't pleasant, but unless you want them to win, you will have to at the very least defend what is yours and keep your people from being lured away by the otherside."

"She isn't wrong, honey," Ruwee said to his daughter.

"Not only does the Senate need to be on board, but the planets themselves. You'll have to rally the citizens of the Republic just as much. Aaron told Boba earlier about two of the nastiest wars on our planet, and our entire country got involved. Buying war bonds, pushing war bonds, rationing groceries, collecting nylons, planting Victory Gardens...just because the Senate says it's so, doesn't mean the people will back it. Involve them. It's not just 'he that has the best toys wins.' Morale is just as much a commodity of war as supplies and bodies. Technology does play a role, but without the citizens backing you, you get what our country would refer to as another Vietnam," I said.

"Before she goes off on a tangent, the short version of Vietnam is we really didn't have any business going in especially for as long as we did. There is a lot more and another war we are ignoring for the sake of keeping this short, but part of it was lack of national support," Aaron said.

"I hadn't really thought about this. I suppose the Senate will have to vote on an official declaration of war, but that could cause another split. Chancellor Palpatine can't just call a war or an army creation. Now, from what Obi-Wan said, a dead jedi ordered the army, but did not inform anyone else," Anakin said.

"Will the Jedi investigate?" Aaron asked.

"We will have to, because this is all too fishy. Someone is orchestrating this, and we would love to find out who," Anakin said.

"Not to be the 'Debbie Downer' here, but how do you propose that happens, Skywalker? I mean, you'd have to investigate everyone who has contact with the Republic from the bottom to the top. Even private citizens could have helped fuel this in some way," I said.

Anakin scowled.

"Jo, you get on my nerves."

"I get on everyone's nerves," I said. "I even know a song that gets on everybody's nerves. Would you like to know how it goes?"

"Enough you two. She's right, Anakin. If an investigation is run, every citizen is a suspect. Even Palpatine cannot be excluded," Padmé said.

Anakin scoffed.

"Palpatine wouldn't do this. He loves the Republic."

"I agree that it is doubtful, he is still suspect to speculation," Padmé said.

"I suppose that's true."

It was silent for a few moments, and we could hear the children tittering out on the lawn. I turned and saw them playing catch.

 _Oh, to be that young and ignorant of the world…_

I was suddenly overcome with the desire to go home again. We hadn't even been away from home for a week.

 _I didn't realize how much could change in 24 hours let alone less than five days._

Barriss also turned to watch the children play, and she looked like she wished she could have played as a child, too. My mind flashed to some wonderful times I had playing with my friend Morgan. We played house under the willow trees that surrounded a pond at her apartment complex. We would also play in the complex office, upstairs, where we weren't supposed to go. Sometimes when there were deep puddles, we would use a stick for a stirrer and make potions with various things laying around, like leaves, crabapples, and pebbles. Morgan moved away a little over a year after we met, but those were still some of the most fun memories of being around that age. Just normal kids stuff, but it was so much fun, and it hurt to think that maybe Barriss hadn't experienced childhood.

 _Though what is normal for the spider is chaos for the fly_.

"Jo, what do you think?" Ruwee asked.

I whipped back around.

"Pardon?"

"Your planet has seen many wars it seems like you would all have died by now. Why haven't you?"

"While our planet is just humans, not every nation is in conflict at the same time. For example, the United States of America (or just the United States, US, or America), was divided in half back around 158 years ago. We were blessed no other nations got involved, or that would have been worse than it was. Sometimes countries have Civil Wars. Sometimes it is just between two countries. Sometimes it is more than that. But only on two occasions was the fighting to the global scale that I explained earlier. And you think that's bad? You'll have a galaxy _full_ of this."

It was silent for quite a while.

"Look how dark it is getting," Anakin said.

"Oh, my, yes. Well, we had best be getting back to the lake house," Padmé agreed with a stretch.

"I know we were shocked, but I promise that we will take this to the grave if we must," Ruwee said.

The rest of the family nodded their agreement.

"I will remind the girls," Sola said.

Padmé hugged her sister, mother, and father, and we shook hands with everyone before we left.

"I'll go round up the droids," Anakin said as he motioned for Padmé to continue onto the transport.

"I'll go with Anakin," Aaron said.

The rest of us loaded up.

The second she was out of sight, Barriss undid her hair and let it fall down.

"That's better."

Her raven locks shone in the light of the transport, and was in soft waves after being in the bun for so long and so tightly.

 _I wonder…_

"Hey Barriss. Anakin has a braid showing that he is a Padawan. What do the women do to show they are a Padawan?"

"Depends. Even with the men...some species don't have hair. I have a braid, but it is covered by a hood, as you saw. It is traditional for Mirialan females to cover their heads. I allowed this tonight, because sometimes, it is nice to switch, and since this whole trip has turned out to be abnormal…"

"I understand."

She moved most of her hair to one side to reveal a braid thicker than Anakins, but still relatively thin to the rest of her hair. Hers was also decorated with silver beads (which I had been unable to see from my position at the Naberrie table).

"That's quite pretty," I said.

"It isn't for beauty, but thank you."

Aaron and Anakin walked up the ramp just before Barriss pulled her hood over her hair, and Aaron blinked hard at it.

"I thought you were bald," he said. "You know when we first met, because I couldn't see your hair."

Barriss blushed, but said forcefully, "No. The hood makes it look that way."

"Rude, bro," I said through a belly laugh.

"Shut-up," he hissed as he shoved his way past me, clearly embarrassed.

END CH. 20


	21. Chapter 21

WPRT Ch. 21

 _ **How Do You Say Forgiveness?**_

An hour after we had arrived at the mansion on the lake, we made our way to the speeder with our belongings in hand. The trip from the village was rather uneventful, and I had noticed Boba taking a seat farthest from Barriss both times. He was still not over what had happened earlier, as any normal child would. Barriss was seated on my right while the kid was on my left. The pressure they gave off seemed to crush me with Barriss' shame and Boba's anger. I was the innards of an emotion sandwich.

Before we entered the transport for the last time, I leaned over and whispered to Jo.

"Hey, trade places with me."

"No way. I saw how they behaved back there," she hissed back.

I sighed in disappointment.

 _She's right._

"Look, bro, you're the one who said for us to let him choose to forgive Barriss on his own time."

 _Right again._

I then had an epiphany which plastered a smug look on my face as we finished loading up our stuff.

Jo noticed it and sighed and asked, "What are you planning?"

"Oh. Nothing."

"Right, and I'm the Queen of Switzerland. What are you up to?"

"Fine, I'll tell you…I don't have to force him to forgive Barriss, but I can speed up the process."

My sister thought about it before replying with uncertainty, "Well, that sounds great, in theory. Do you think you could pull it off?"

"Anything would be better than having to keep dealing with this. Especially on an interstellar luxury ship. This is one of our highest priorities."

I took a few moments to think before a scary thought entered my mind. I brought my hands up to my head in terror and said, "Yeah, right behind 'what we are even going to say to a room filled with leaders of an order of mystical space monks!'"

Jo shuddered and justifiably so. I wasn't that far behind her at this point. Stage fright happens to even the bravest people; however, this was a different taste of fear. We had no comfort of "It's only family," or "It's just our class," to help. We had nobody to lean on but each other.

I gave my sister what little comfort I could.

"We can do this Jo. You're a Sunday school teacher. You gave a devotional* at the last ladies retreat*. Plus I have a few Invitations* under my belt when it comes to experience in speech. We use our laptops, create an explanation, and practice it six times. No more, no less."

"Awww do we have to do it that many times. The thing will take hours to even get through once. And that's if we use everything we have."

"No Jo, we are not going to use everything. We don't have the time for it, and neither do they. The war is their biggest concern right now. And yes Jo. We are going to practice it that many. You and I both know better than to mess this up. We get one shot. And for that one shot, we need to be clear and concise."

"Ok fine, you're the 'Preacher'. But what are we going to even say?"

"We can talk about that on the ship. I will at least say we should try to guess what questions they're going to ask and go from there. Let's keep quiet for now. The others are almost here."

Jo turned towards the direction I was looking and saw what I was talking about. In front were Anakin and Padmé. Followed by Boba, Bossk and Barriss single file. Everyone was eager to leave as much as we were. Carrying what they had brought with them. I motioned for Barriss to enter first while I followed after her. As she entered, I looked back to see an impatient Boba wait for me to get in.

 _Ok, keep your shirt on kid. I'm going…_

My legs were cramped along side Barriss. The only one not cramped was Boba. The seats were meant for smaller people. Padmé had offered to call for a second transport. Anakin however butted in and said that it would only bring unwanted attention to ourselves. We tried to see how we could all fit into the enclosed speeder with multiple failures. Eventually we found a way, only it wasn't so pleasant for everyone. Bossk had to hold his head down. But that was it for everyone else save for Barriss and I. Padmé and Anakin rode in the front with Anakin driving, while Jo and Bossk were directly behind them. The rest of us piled into the back (as I have already said). The Droids were in the trunk. Anakin snapped C-3PO off when he protested about his seating arrangement, and R2-D2 seemed unconcerned. I think he was just happy to be there.

Thankfully, all of the trips thus far, the droids were turned off. The last thing anyone needed were those two arguing the whole time.

"Are we all set?"

We all answered Anakin with a "yes" before he activated the speeder.

"Then let's go."

A moment later, our transport shot into the dark.

Previously, we were able to take a couple of boats to the lake house; however, they didn't allow boat travel after dark, so this was the only means available. Therefore, we did not go back the same way. So, for the first few minutes, we were silent while Padme relayed the root back to the ship with Anakin.

Things seemed to be ok for the moment. It was the perfect time to help Barriss and Boba.

 _What should I do? I would like to talk about something that they could relate to. But in reality, I know little to nothing about them, aside from what they do for a living or what their people are. It's time to change that now._

"So Barriss, what do you Jedi normally do for fun?"

She looked at me inquisitively.

"Fun?"

I rolled my eyes, "Yeah, you know, what do you like to do outside of your training?"

She shrugged with what little room she had, "Nothing really. If we're not training we're meditating on our actions and thoughts for the day. Our minds are our greatest tools and meditation helps maintain them. Distractions can be very disastrous to us and others."

One guess who spoke up, "Like today?"

Barriss slowched, "Yeah…"

I changed the topic back to her day-to-day life, "So you don't go out to places to try, I don't know, sports or other activities? Maybe visit friends?"

The padawan huffed looking out the window, "It's not like we don't have friends, it's just that we can't have too strong of an attachment with them."

"So more or less 'acquaintances.'"

She didn't say anything as she stared out the window. The woman was upset, but not at me. Once more, my ability spoke for her.

 _"I don't think I have those even…"_

I looked at her upset having now know that about her. It was no wonder she had said what she had said to us on that military ship.

 _Doesn't their order teach this stuff to the kids? You still need friends!_

I looked forward saying "Well that changes today, Barriss."

My comment had garnered the attention of Barriss and Boba enough to look straight at me.

The young Jedi spoke first, "What are you talking about?"

"I am saying you don't have to have just 'acquaintances.' You can be friends with us!"

Both proceeded to look at me as if I had grown two heads; however Boba responded first by crossing his arms quickly and turned back to the window.

 _Typical for a kid his age._

Barriss seemed to look more down than before, "I'm not so sure that's a good idea."

"Come on! It's easy," I said and cleared my throat before proceeding, "'Hello! My name is Aaron Shepherd! How would you like to be Friends?' See? It's easy. Now you try."

She proceeded to roll her eyes at my antics and said, "There's more to it than that."

I smiled devilishly, "So you do know how to make friends."

"I never said I didn't."

"Touché."

Barriss drew a blank at what I said, "Pardon?"

I laughed, "Sorry, that's a word from one of our world's many languages called French. It means 'that's true.'"

Somehow, I could tell Barriss was amazed by the fact that she was one of the first few people to hear a language from our world.

Boba was surprised as well, "You know more languages than Basic?"

I snorted, "'Know' is a bit of a stretch. More or less for me, I dabble."

Barriss didn't care, "Could I here more of them?"

 _It wouldn't hurt._

"Oui Mademoiselle!"

"That still French right?"

I whistled, " Yes 'Miss Lucky.'"

She shyly replied, "Well, most Jedi are naturally linguistic to be able to help multiple cultures over an ever growing galactic community. It's bad to be on a mission of great importance and only fail because you couldn't talk to people for assistance."

 _That makes sense._

She motions me to continue.

I smiled, "Alright then,*Ahem* Vis-à-vis."

She shook her head in amusement, "That's still French."

"Ha, you caught me. It means 'face to face'. Your really good at this."

"Well that one was easy, I read your emotions and sensed a devious intent. So I just assumed it was French. Also, you spoke with the same dramatics."

 _Dramatics?_

This time Jo interjected, "You moved your hand flowery."

 _What?_

I looked down to see what she meant. To my surprise, I found my hand in the air on auto pilot doing "who" knows what.

 _Maybe seeing French portrayed in comedies has really left an impression on me._

"Alright get it. How about this one. 'Carpe diem'."

She seemed to be in thought while Jo smiled turning back to her conversation with Bossk.

Finally Boba tried this time before Barriss could, "Is it French?"

"Nope, its from a dead language called Latin. It means 'Seize the day'."

"Dead language?"

Barriss answered the boy before I could, "It means that nobody speaks it as their own language anymore."

"Oh."

Boba was slightly disappointed I wasn't the one to answer for him. Barriss and I looked at each other disappointed by the boy's outright rejection of Bariss.

 _Boba is one tough nut to crack, I'll give him that. But while we're still on the subject of Languages…_

"Say Boba, your Father said a Mando needs to know some of your people's language. Do you think you can teach me some of it right now, like saying hello?"

Barriss pleaded, "I would like to know as well, I was kind of curious when I was little to learn Mando'a myself at the temple but I was told to learn others first."

Boba looked between the two of us before rolling his eyes like Robert Downey Jr, "Fine you can learn, too, Barriss. Just don't ask too many questions."

He cleared his throat and said, "Su cuy'gar."

"Is that hello?"

"Right, 'Wooba soosa Boba.'"

"My name is Boba?"

"Right again. Try this one, 'Ma voule kesta-won miam nu ghis'"

We thought for a bit before we gave up.

"Got ya!"

"Yeah, yeah you stumped us. What does it mean?"

The boy laughed, "'I'd like food right now.'"

Barriss and I laughed a good bit before I declared, "Amen, Boba."

Both passengers turned to me with looks of confusion.

I gave a nervous chuckle before replying, "What seems to be the problem?"

Both looked at each other before looking back and asked, "What does 'Amen' mean?"

 _Oh Boy…_

 _XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX_

After a good while, we arrived back at the capitol spaceport. All of us walked up the ramp of the cruiser with luggage in hand. Jo was having a conversation about one of her favorite pastimes, reading, with Barriss. Boba was now with Bossk asking something about armor modification.

 _I should ask them about that another time for my own armor._

I was in the back of the group with Anakin and Padmé as Anakin spoke up, "It's so good to be heading home."

… _Yeah..._

"Remember Anakin, we need to make some plans on the way to Coruscant about 'you know what'."

"Don't worry Padmé things will work out. Somehow, I feel that having more people know makes this easier."

"I feel the same Ani. Aaron, thank you for advising I tell my family. If I hadn't told them what happened, it would have weighed on my mind until I went insane."

"Padmé, think nothing of it. I understand how it is. I have done things I regret that I had done and kept it from my family."

She nodded her head as I resumed, "But when you talk about it to others. You share the load with someone else. If they reject you, they reject you. Your lucky to have an understanding family."

"Thank you Aaron. You seemed to be well versed in these situations."

"It comes with experience."

Anakin gave his thoughts, "Well this still bothers me: we saw how Barriss was. I'd hate to see what happens if the whole order finds out."

I reassured him, "If we could sway Barriss, we can sway more. Don't worry Anakin. It will come to pass in time."

He huffed out a, "Maybe."

"We will. While we're at it, I have been wanting your help on something Anakin…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Are you sure this is the best option?"

Anakin responded confidently, "Hey, it's not my fault your people are held back in battery capability. If I'm right, you won't need to charge your phone for a month with these communicator batteries, even if you use your video function the whole time. Not to mention the makeshift chargers I just made for your phone and computer..."

"Fair enough."

"I got to say, this has been one of my most interesting projects I have done. I mean this phone is simple yet more capable than our data pads. Would you mind if I tried to replicate your phone and computer?"

"Not at all, Anakin. In fact, I think yours would be superior in every way. You could probably start your own company."

"You think so? Well it wouldn't matter, anyway, because the Jedi Order is against that kind of thing."

"Why am I not surprised? Well, maybe they're against it. But I didn't hear a no."

Anakin laughed, "We'll see."

Things were quiet now as Anakin was putting on the finishing touches on my phone. He finally put the battery in place and closed the lid on the back. A small snap was made as it went into place. He handed it to me as he moved my laptop to his work station. He flipped it upside down and analysed the back.

"Is this the battery?"

"Yeah."

"I think I have a few spare droid batteries that I could mold into its shape, though the whole thing might take a couple of hours."

"In that case, do you mind if I do something on it really fast?"

He looked at me confused before he said, "Sure."

With that, I flipped the PC over and turned on the laptop. After 20 seconds the Windows logo popped up followed by the jingle. As soon as the login menu showed up I typed away. I grabbed my USB and plugged it into my computer.

"What's that?"

I answered Anakin's question, "This is a flash drive. In short, it allows me to transfer files and documents from computer to computer. In this case, I'm transferring my homework research to Jo's laptop so we can put together what we are going to tell them about us."

He looked puzzled and asked,"Don't you think you're overthinking this? You're just speaking to the council about your predicament. Right?"

"Well that may be true; however, this is my people's first contact with people outside our world. For all I know this could actually still be our galaxy and we are in an explored section. I want to make sure it has an impact and explains our situation. Our friends are still out there."

Realization came upon his face, "That's right! Your buddies are out there so you need the council's help looking for them."

"Yep, and if they notice any traits they will know that it's one of our friends that got separated."

"So what are you going to talk about?"

"I'm hoping we can just go over current events and some other things. We are, for sure, going to start of with what are system looks like. Maybe run it through a scanner or something."

"Maybe if we were to do that, it would help if we had a star map of your nearby systems."

I thought for a bit before replying, "We may not have one, but I know who does: Eugene."

"One of your missing friends I presume?"

"Exactly. His research was on systems found in our galaxy and star formation. Do you think that would be enough."

"I don't know but I hope it will. What else are you going to go over?"

I was about to tell him, but a bad thought ran through my mind.

 _I was going to tell him before, but now will be a good as time as any._

"Anakin?"

"...Yeah?"

"Do you promise not to overreact on what I'm about to tell you?"

His curiosity turned into anticipation, "Uh, sure?"

"I know what happened."

"What do you-?"

"On Tatooine. I know what really happened, and I'm sure Jo knows too."

Anakin gulped before saying, "Whatever do you mean?"

"You can drop the act. I know about the raiders from your Stepfather-."

Anakin stood up "HE'S NOT MY STEPFATHER!"

I backed off from him a few feet to give him some room.

"I WILL NEVER-..."

He couldn't continue as his emotions couldn't take it anymore as he collapsed on the floor in a slump.

"I-I can't accept it… why did I… what was I?"

He burst into tears. I knew this feeling quite well. Like everyone and everything is gone because of one bad mistake. One you could never take back. Good thing I had made mistakes like this before. Because of them, I knew what to do.

I walked over to the crying mess that was Anakin and did the one thing I could. I pulled him into a hug. If he was shocked by my action, he didn't show it. He accepted it as he cried in my arms.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

He cried for a good 10 minutes before he calmed down. It was a good thing this workshop area on the ship was sound proof. From what I understood, padawans didn't have good training when it came to emotions and how to handle them.

 _Ignoring emotions doesn't fix them!_

It reminded me of the problem with a recent-ish Disney film about a girl with ice powers. Whatever they have said to them was false. They couldn't seem to reign in their emotions when something personal was involved. I know people have their limits, even Jesus, the Son of God, cried for his family, but from what I have been shown, the Jedi were the most lonely bunch I had ever met. Even if they claimed they could only love their order, it didn't show.

 _If Anakin did what he did, it seemed that he feels he has nobody to help him. Let's see if I can help._

"Anakin I know all about it. I just put the pieces together. But what I don't know is why you-? Well you know."

Anakin took for himself a few moments to breath and responded, "They didn't just murder her, she was tortured for days. Cuts and gashes were across her body. S-she w-was hung up to a pole like an ANIMAL!"

He brought his hands to his head, "S-she told me s-she was proud of me… right before s-she died. After that… I don't know what overcame me… the next thing I knew… bodies of raiders were everywhere. Not just the fighters, E-EVERYONE! IT'S ALL MY FAULT!"

He just started to break down once more. This was one of his worst fears come to life. More people seeing his real side. Or what he thought was his real side. There was only one way to stop this, telling him the truth.

"It's not all your fault Anakin."

His head shot up with his eyes red from tears.

"It's not all your fault."

"How? I killed everyone."

"You were pushed Anakin. It was really the only conclusion."

Anakin turned away, "That's what a Sith would say…"

That angered me that he would say that after all we had been through, but I kept it in and ask, "Why?"

"Saying that I had to do that. That I should let anger control me."

 _Ah. I guess what I said would come off as that._

"I didn't say that Anakin. I said you were pushed to do it. Yes you could have said no. But from what I have heard about you and your order. I'm surprised something like this hasn't happened with anyone else sooner."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You Order seems to profess love for each other without actually showing it. And your whole world was your mother from the sound of it. I mean, did you want to be a Jedi?"

Anakin answered in a heartbeat, "Yes! I did. Ever since I was a slave, I always dreamed to be a Jedi! Not only for freedom, but to have the power to free all of the slaves. When opportunity presented itself, I really wanted to! But only I was freed. I told my mom that I wanted to stay with her. But she told me this was the path I should take, because it was my dream. I don't know what I would have done if I knew what I know now."

I laughed, "I think you know Anakin."

I had annoyed him apparently, "I just said I didn't."

"Well you do. Your mom said for you to do it. So her death is not on your head. And from the sound of it, you were just a kid. All kids are impressionable. No doubt about it your mother did and does love you still."

"But I killed all of those people! How could I be forgiven? I'm a monster…"

"Anakin, I'll say it again, you were pressured. You felt that if she died, you would be alone?"

"Yes. But-."

"Well there is the cause. When she died, the one thought than ran through your mind was that you lost everyone that was important to you. You don't have an attachment to the order because they never really showed you love-."

What I said baffled him, "That doesn't change anything! I killed them!"

"I'm not saying it changes things, Anakin, let me finish. The Order never showed you the love you needed, because you were an outsider. You were made an outcast by default."

"That only proves that I didn't do what I should have…"

I sighed, "Well what about the Raiders then? I'm sure that your mother wasn't their first victim. To be known as 'Raiders', they had to have been doing this kind of stuff for a long time. And it seemed no real action from the Republic or Jedi was given."

"How do you know this stuff?"

"I listened to word clues from everyone I have met so far in this galaxy. We are nowhere near safe now that an army of droids and corporations want our heads. If I can't notice even the little things, I'm putting myself and my sister in danger. It was one of the things that helped me to understand what kind of a man Dooku was before we were trapped in a bad deal."

I decided to use my hand to help Anakin up, which he took. Picking up the stool, I motioned him to sit in it and he did just that. I continued, "I can continue on why it's not all your fault. But only if you promise to let me finish."

Begrudgingly he replied, "Alright…"

I cleared my throat and carried on, " One: The Raiders have been attacking people for a long time. Two: The Raiders felt proud of themselves, never thinking that they would pay for their misdeeds. Three: The Republic, ignores problems on world's like Tatooine just to avoid a conflict that they think will be too much of a hassle. Four: The Jedi are the guardians of your galaxy only going as far as the Republic will allow. Five: The Jedi not fully accepting you as a member, thus making you an outcast, save for a few like Barriss and your master Obi-wan. If the strength of your order is its unity, you were excluded."

Anakin finally understood what I was getting at, but didn't say anything not yet convinced himself. Only viewing himself as the worst monster in history.

 _Time to blow that out of the water._

"Anakin, did you persecute the whole population of Raiders for years, starve them, split up their families, gas them, and throw the corpses in furnessess?"

Anakin was dumbfounded but answered, "No."

"Did you nail them to Crosses and have them spread about your own personal garden?"

"No."

"Did you send angry mobs to stone them to death? "

"No!"

"Do you regret your actions?"

"Yes!"

"Would you do whatever it takes to get rid of your mistake?"

"YES!"

"Then you have much over the most evil men of history from my world. There was a man named Hitler, who help propel a movement to commit total genocide by some of the most cruel means. They had blamed a religious group, called the Jews, for most of their problems. They treated other groups the same, like the one I'm from, Christianity. But they hit the Jews the most. They were shunned, bullied, and killed. Treated like a subspecies of human, like a plague. Then the persecutors took it one step further by rounding them up to concentration camps, where families were torn apart and stripped of their clothing. They were made to work with very little food, starving them to the point where they were nothing but skin and bones. They were dying in the millions."

Anakin stares at me in disbelief as continued, "But even that wasn't enough. They gassed the oppressed by telling them they were going to take a shower in the very same ones they had built. But they weren't showers they were gas chambers. In the end, over six million Jews were killed. That's not even including the other groups or even how many Jews the Soviet Union killed around that time."

Anakin was mad, "Would you please not make jokes like that? That's not funny!"

I said nothing as I moved my hand to my Laptop. Using the little touch mouse pad, I moved the mouse over my Homework file and clicked on it to bring up the pictures I was going to use. I spoke to Anakin one more time before I showed him something he would wish he hadn't seen.

"They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but how about a video."

The video was titled "Holocaust Uncovered: Buchenwald Camp" I clicked on it and Anakin stared in horror.

(I don't think I need to explain every picture in extreme detail. I will only explain what most of them showed. Horror beyond measure. Piles of bodies that were malnourished, burned, rotted. Furneses filled with human ash. Mass graves dug up with the remains of the victims. Finally, showing the survivors who were walking skeletons with whip marks and bruises across their bodies).

I said nothing as the short video finished up with the speaker saying, "Never let anyone say 'This Never Happened'." Anakin didn't dare move. I could understand. To see how far evil could go is not an easy thing. I grew up seeing these kinds of documentaries, Anakin hadn't.

Eventually I broke the silence, "As you see, Anakin, I'm not joking. Evil like this is never new, just the numbers and technology change. 'War never changes'."

Anakin still said nothing.

"I haven't been joking around with you. You have my utmost attention right now because you need it. Now to continue on, almost two millennia ago, An emperor of the Roman Empire named Nero was a mad man. But one of the things he was known for was what I said earlier about the crosses. That wasn't even the worst of what he did, and in an area on my world called the Middle East, the stoning I mentioned, is probably happening right now. It's one of the few places in our world where actions like that still exists. But it's not just stoning that's happening there, crucifixion and castration are also among the many barbaric acts that happen there. It's happening to my people and many others."

"And nobody is doing anything to stop it?!"

"No. There are some people. But they don't have enough resources to do much. That place of the world is cut off from most countries because of the type of people there. You would need a military escort to even be remotely safe there if you were a civilian. They don't like outsiders that much."

Anakin seemed to get more upset the more he heard about the atrocities committed by others. Which was a good thing.

"So now knowing all of that, what you did seems minuscule compared to those 'men'."

"But that doesn't make it any better. If they could never change, how could I change? My crimes are just as bad. Even if I didn't torture them before they died. My actions caused the raiders to attack more than before. You wouldn't have had to save those farmers if I hadn't killed the entire camp."

"Now Anakin, there is no way of knowing if you had done it different would have made things better. Remember, the Raiders are not so innocent. Maybe they should have been taken as prisoners for their crimes, but nobody did anything about it. In reality, you could say they reaped what they sowed. Or they bit off more than they could chew. But nonetheless… I think if you hadn't my sister and I would be dead in the desert of Tatooine…"

"I don't-."

"Anakin! Why was the Raider camp my sister and I came across there in the first place?"

"What are- Oh…"

"Yes Anakin, that camp would not have been there if it wasn't for you. And we were lucky we were heading in the right direction of it in the first place."

Anakin sighed in defeat, "All right Aaron, I'll give you that. But I can't get it outta my head. All the screaming, the death."

"Then don't, Anakin. Never forget. Those who forget are doomed to repeat."

"But how can I move on."

"You move on."

Anakin still wasn't satisfied with my answer. I needed to get through his head that it's not the end of the world.

"Hey. What about Jango."

"Jango?"

"Right, how many people do you think he killed for Dooku? There could be some innocent people he killed in the mix. How much do you think that's weighing on him right now?"

"I suppose…"

"When he finally realised what he'd been doing this whole time -going against his beliefs his people held-t devastated him to his core. Even then, he moved on and did what he had to do for his family and friends. You should, too."

"Alright you convinced me… I need to think about this."

"Take your time."

I started to walk to the door before another thought entered my mind.

"Oh! Anakin?"

"Yeah?"

"I guess you're not the only one keeping secrets. My sister told me something on the way Naboo. It answered a question I had since Geonosis."

"What was the question?"

"How did Jo get that lightsaber that she used to help me block the attack from count Dooku?"

"I don't know. I guess it slipped my mind. It was kind of convenient for her to just find one-... Oh no, she didn't!"

"She did. She grabbed it from your severed hand on the ground."

Anakin moved his hand into a facepalm.

I coughed in my hand and also added, "She was planning on telling you sooner, but you were in a bad mood with her so I decided I should be the one to tell you before she would mess it all up. Most likely saying something stupid in front of the council, like 'Anakin lent me a hand' or somthing along those lines."

Surprisingly, the mood in the air changed all of a sudden. It went from stress to joy.

Anakin erupted in laughter, "Are you serious! Her saying that in front of the council! I could just see the looks on their faces!"

 _Well that cheered him up._

"Yeah, my sister and I have a guilty pleasure in dark humor."

"Is that so?"

"Yeppers. If you want, I can show you some stuff I think you would like. Maybe I can show you one video before we arrive. It's called _Shrek_."

" _Shrek_? What's that?"

"The name of the main character in that film. I can tell you more about it later. I've gotta work with my sister on what we're going to present. And I'm sure you want to finish up that battery project."

He looked at the table in remembrance of what he was doing in the first place, "Right. I'll get this set up in a jiffy."

With that I walked right out of the room. Leaving a more hopeful Anakin…

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The 'evening' worn on, as Jo and I worked on our little project of ours. We had just completed the ending to our speech for the sixth time when Boba walked in on us.

"Hey, you guys done with your stuff yet?"

"We just did, what's up?"

"We still have one more day before we make it to Coruscant and we were wondering when you'll be going to sleep. Padmé wanted to show you the sleeping quarters."

"Right. Tell her we'll be there in a second."

As boy went to do just that, I turned to my sister to see here yawning.

 _Something tells me we are going to need all the sleep we can get for tonight._

"You ready Jo?"

"I'm always ready for sleep."

"Then let's go."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The evening had finally passed to morning. Or whatever counts as evening and morning on a ship in space. I was at this time getting dressed in the last suit I'd ever wear (Figuratively speaking). The armor provided by the infamous Jango fett.

I was putting on my breast plate as I walked out of the sleeping quarters head held high as Jo walked up behind me asking, "Do you have to wear that now?"

"As a matter of fact I do. I don't want to change my clothes right before we meet the Jedi council."

"But why do you have to wear 'that'? It not like they want to kill us."

"No. But it's part of the Mando code Jango told me. This Amour is respectable to wear like any suit you would wear to a wedding. Maybe even my own funeral."

"Please don't say that. A funeral for you is the last thing I want to be thinking of. But I see your point."

"Don't worry Jo, we'll make it home. For now, let's go get some grub."

Her stomach growled before she replied with an ok.

We walked into the kitchen area to see a glorious sight. Fresh breakfast food arrayed before our eyes. It was what you would call a miniature buffet. Fruits of random assortment (some recognizable), pancakes, cooked meat, and more of the blue milk that Jo had before.

And not far away at a small round table, Boba Bossk, and Padmé were having a nice discussion about adventures Boba had been on with his father. They waved to us and Padmé spoke, "We were waiting for you two. Did you sleep well?"

"Like a rock. I gotta say, those were some top quality beds."

"Oh well the people of Naboo were the ones who provided everything we have here. So please thank them."

Jo laughed, "Please Padmé, you're too modest. Please don't change."

She laughed at the complement before saying, "Thank you. Oh but I'm sure you're hungry. C-3PO helped me fix up what we had so please help yourself. I'm going to check up on Anakin."

As the senator left, and we decided to do just what she said. We grabbed a bit of everything until we were satisfied with what we had. We sat down on chairs opposite to Boba and Bossk. Bossk was busy looking on a data pad while Boba was digging into the sound on his plate. At this time, Jo and I said quick prayers to ourselves before we ate what was before us.

"Whahtwhasththatyoudidjustnow?"

Jo gave him a motherly glare, "Now I'm sure your dad, of all people, taught you to not talk with your mouth full, Boba."

He rolled his eyes before he swallowed, "I said, 'What was that you did just now?' And yes, my dad has taught me to not talk with my mouth full."

Jo gave Boba an eye roll of her own before answering his question, "We did quick prayers to God thanking Him for the food provided for us."

"Oh. I think I saw you do something like that before you went to bed. I mean I've heard of other religions in the galaxy that does stuff like that, but I've never seen it in practice. Why do you so that more so? Do you have too?"

"No, we don't _have_ to. But if we want to be strong in our faith it is a necessity. To us it's not meant to be a hassle. We do it because we love Him and are thankful for what He has done for us."

"Well who is your God? What does he look like?"

"Maybe we should talk about this after the meeting you two. We need to gain strength. So let's eat."

"Amen."

To my surprise it was Boba who said it, which caused my sister and I to give each other a bemused look.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The meal itself took a while to get through. All the while, Bossk looked at his data pad in dead silence, taking no notice of the conversation we had with Boba.

I used the napkin nearby to wipe my mouth and proceeded to get the Trandosian's attention.

"Bossk, you feeling alright?"

He didn't respond or make a move. He looked rather bored.

"Bossk?"

That got his attention.

"Wha- Oh sorry guys, did you needed something?"

"Not necessarily. We were checking on you. You look like you're bored with whatever you are reading.

"Oh no, it was interesting. I was looking at the Holo news for anything new. I saw something about a new pirate rising to power recently going by the name 'Captain Blood'. And another pirate by the name of Hondo is now claiming that he is the first Pirate Admiral. I mean the whole thing sounds ridiculous to me, but the Holo Net is making a big deal about it, so it means something I guess. I've seen nothing about the battle that happened on Geonosis. Are they just ignoring what happened or are they just ignorant? Ugh! I hate being in the dark about stuff like this."

"Wow Bossk. You seem to be taking this pretty seriously."

"Well, my job as a bounty hunter requires me to be aware of those kinds of things. It could affect business in a negative or a positive way. And I do care about what happens in the galaxy. I am one of many who live in it."

"Fair enough. I was kinda the same way back home."

"Really?"

"Yeah. My dad and I would watch the news a lot in the morning when I was a kid. It felt a little irresponsible of me not to. I didn't want to be pushed to the side when the grown-ups started talking about any tragic event."

 _Never again…_

"Well enough about me. What about you, Bossk? What was your life like back home?"

Boba stopped eating to look at Bossk in anticipation. Bossk himself seemed rather nervous.

 _I crossed a line._

"I'm sorry, Bossk. I should have kept my big mouth shut."

"No, it's alright. When I left my home, I left on bad terms- especially with my Father. He always looked down on anything I did for myself. I was not good enough. I hope to prove him wrong one day by taking control of our people from him."

Boba was surprised to hear that, "Woah, your dad is the leader of the Trandosians?

"Not the whole species, but a good portion of it. He always praised my brother for his hunting, but the difference is that he hunts people who are innocent by means of kidnapping, taking away their weapons, and leaving them with nothing but the clothes on their backs. It's like fighting a declawed predator out of his environment. The game is stacked too much in the hunter's favor. There is no sport in it. That's why I became a bounty hunter. I hunt against the ones who are asked to be killed. The prey chooses his environment, he picks his weapons, and he gives it his all. That's a true hunt. Money is just an added bonus. It's all for the Scorekeeper."

I was about to ask him what the 'Scorekeeper' was exactly, but Anakin entered the room before I could. He seemed to be in a better mood.

"Well, everyone, we're only a few hours out from Coruscant, and most likely, once we arrive, we will be escorted to the Jedi temple. They will take a couple of hours to assemble everyone for the meeting, as they are trying to organize our forces."

"Fair enough. But two hours?"

"It normally takes more than that. You have it lucky."

"I guess we do. Anything else we need to know?"

"Yes, please don't go exploring the temple unsupervised. It can be a maze to strangers, no offence."

"None taken."

"Yes, and the rest of the order knows nothing about you."

This surprised everyone else.

Jo spoke up, "Why is that?"

"They want to keep something like this under wraps until they come to a decision."

"Yeah. I could see some Jedi being mad at Jango after what he had done."

"Y-yeah, Jango…"

Anakin however looked unsure with what he said.

 _"Was he talking about something else? What could it be?"_

"Do you think my dad stands a chance?"

Anakin smiled, "Good as he is going to get with you all being there. It will sort itself out."

"If you say so…"

Anakin looked sadly at Boba. He could relate to him having been raised by a single parent.

Then, he remembered something and said, "Oh Aaron. You remember what you said last night about that film. What was it called? _Shriek_?"

"Yeah, _Shrek_. If you want to have all of us watch it we would have to set up in the lounge area."

Boba and Bossk were now curious, "What's it about?"

"You'll have to see, Boba. One does not simply explain a movie like it."

"Well I hope to be entertained."

"You will Bossk. Did you finish up my computer Anakin?"

"Yep."

"Then go ahead and get Barriss and Padmé while I go set it up.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Why do I have to see this?"

"Because, Barriss, we are your friends, and you need to try to branch out more. Even if you don't like this film, the maybe we can watch something up your alley another time."

"Oh alright. I just...it doesn't have crude humor like that sponge show."

Jo laughed, "Prepare to be disappointed."

The padawan only replied with a groan. The former queen spoke up in our defence.

"I'm willing to give it a chance, and I would be able to see it from the beginning, unlike the other cartoons."

"If it's any good as those I could get behind them. Patrick was my favorite character."

Jo spoke up to Bossk, "Yeah you would like him."

"And what's that's supposed to mean?!"

"Well, here we go everyone." I said trying to get Jo out of that situation.

I pressed start and the DreamWorks intro played.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Well that was… _interesting_. Aside from the unusual humor it had depth to the world."

"Now Barris, don't you mean 'layers'?"

She shook her head at my joke, "Very funny Aaron. I'm sure you would knock Master Windu off his feet."

"I may very well yet!"

Padmé interjected, "I for one thought the film was lovely. Aside from some of the humor I didn't understand, it was an outstanding story about finding love. The end was goofy with the songs I had never heard before."

"We can play those songs for you sometime if you want."

"I'd be delighted Jo."

Bossk laughed, "The best parts for me were the interactions between Shrek and Donkey."

Boba laughed as well, "Especially the part with the Duloc song sung by the 'animatronics', as you called them."

I sighed to myself smiling.

 _Enjoy the little things Aaron. They may not last. Especially now that we're only a couple of hours away._

Anakin spoke up, "I have to say, Shepherds, that was one good story. And I'm sure there's plenty more where that came from."

"You guessed right, but we can save them for another time. We need to get our stuff together."

Boba slumped at remembering that the trial for his father would start soon. Padmé came up to him and reassured the child, "Your dad will be alright. The Jedi will understand your father's position. And I will be there to help speak on his behalf."

This shocked all of us, but the boy's excitement could not be contained.

"You will? But why? You hardly know us."

 _That's right! Boba doesn't know what his dad has done to her._

But Padmé smiled and said, "Because I have learned that you can't judge people based off a few actions. People have layers."

With that, all of us broke into laughter that would cure any sadness.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"We'll be dropping out of hyperspace any second. Are you sure you don't want to take a seat for this, Shepherds? Some people faint when they first see Coruscant for the first time.

I know I almost did when I was a kid."

 _Coruscant. The Republic homeworld. The world described as a city that covers one world. It took awhile to get here. And we may be here a while yet…_

"We can handle it, Anakin. It's not everyday you get to see something that can knock your socks off."

"Fair enough. Dropping out of hyperspace... now."

With the switch of a few buttons and knobs, space around the ship went back to normal. And before us was a sight to behold. When people say a city that covers a whole planet, they mean a whole planet. The world had skyscrapers that put our home world to shame as they literally scraped the sky. It made me wonder how anyone could handle living on a world like that. My sister was on the same boat as me.

But wonder soon changed to terror...

At first it was a whisper in the back of my mind. But it slowly grew louder every second.

 _Voices? Am I hearing Voices? Where?_

My question was unanswered as it grew louder. It was now to the point it was like I was in a packed party.

Anakin looked at me, "Hey, Aaron, you alright? I know it can be overwhelming, but do you normally shake at your knees? ...Aaron?"

After that, I couldn't hear him that much. The voices grew louder. My head was starting to hurt. I moved my hand to my head to comfort the pain. Even so, it grew louder. I asked for help, but it grew louder. I yelled for help, but it grew **louder**. I put my other hand to my head while hunched over, but it grew **LOUDER** than I thought possible.

 _Where is it coming from?!_

I opened my eyes and looked ahead, I saw the city ever so bright.

 _The people? I can HEAR THE WHOLE PLANET?! AAAAHHH!_

I collapsed to the floor as my vision got blurry. I could see about a foot ahead of me, and I saw the feet of people rushing to my aid. I closed my eyes and pulled across the cold floor. Bile shot out of my mouth.

Before I lost consciousness, I heard one thing. One voice above the other voices. One that sent terror beyond reason in me…

 _"_ _ **They're here…"**_

 **End Chapter**

 **A/N: Thank you for Joining us on this journey so far. We hope to finish this story to the end, whenever it will be. Happy One year Anniversary!**

 **Invitation- a short topical lesson presented to a person or group of people in regards to the steps of Salvation and urgency in which to do them**

 **Devotional- a short reading or presentation on a religious topic, designed to help the reader or listener reflect on a topic**

 **Ladies Retreat- a large group of women participating in a Bible study of some sort, guided by a variety of speakers as a way for women to get together and have fellowship with one another**


	22. Chapter 22

WPRT CH. 22

 _Eye of the Storm_

Jo:

Aaron just laid there on the spaceship floor, covered in vomit, clammy, and unconscious .

I knelt down beside him, and gently started slapping his cheeks.

"Aaron? Aaaarrrrron...AARON!"

Barriss pushed me aside, knelt down on his other side, and put her right palm on his forehead. She closed her eyes to concentrate

 _Is she doing the mind meld like in Star Trek?! Oh! This can't be good!_

Barriss continued what she was doing as the others rushed into the room. Bossk kept a hand on his blaster, seemingly expecting the worst. Padmé and Boba were watching them intently, curious and horrified.

I knew she wouldn't kill him, but I was wary, my hands in fists, ready to strike her should the situation get too fishy.

Thankfully, Aaron clapped back to consciousness and coughed a few times, flecks of vomit flying out of his mouth.

"Dude, are you okay?" I asked.

"I think so...just overstimulated. I heard so many thoughts at once that it hurt my head. That's why I got dizzy and threw up."

"Thankfully, because that's metal, it'll wipe off," I said eyeing the spots on his armor, "and the acid might help polish the surface."

"Gross," Boba said.

"His stomach has acid. Your stomach has acid. Everyone's stomach has acid," I replied, my own stomach suddenly queasier from the smell. I was wearing the dress from Dooku again, as it was the only clothing in my possession that was relatively clean and not stinky (aside from a t-shirt that said _I don't appreciate your lack of sarcasm_ , but I didn't think that was appropriate, whether they could read English or not).

"I'll help him clean it off," Bossk said.

"I appreciate that, thank you," I said as Bossk led Aaron away toward the washroom.

"Make it quick! We will be landing in less than five minutes," Anakin said from the cockpit.

Everything we could see out the window was glittering in the sunlight, and it felt like watching _Metropolis_. I shuddered to think what secrets that the shiny surface could be hiding in the depths below.

Anakin piloted us down to a landing pad, where Obi-Wan Kenobi stood to greet us, accompanied by an R2 of a different color. He stood in fresh robes and he was clean. The droid was also in immaculate condition. He seemed much calmer on his own turf than he did in the dungeons of that palace on Geonosis. This, in turn, helped me to relax slightly.

Bossk and Aaron returned just as we were making our way down the gangplank to the landing pad.

Ships and personal vehicles zoomed by us, and I took a peek over the edge of the platform. It was a several hundred foot drop to the street below, and my stomach jumped to my throat.

"Be careful, Batman. You don't want to fall down there," Obi-Wan said with a chuckle.

"No, I wouldn't," I replied with a forced laugh of my own.

 _I sound like that little ol' Cummings gal from_ Oklahoma.

He ushered us into an open roofed transport that was standing only and we pulled away. C-3PO seemed almost scared, but he was just as new to the big city as Aaron and I were, but Aaron didn't seem half as nervous as I did. He actually seemed to gain confidence as we sped along, his armor glinted in the sun, even shinier now from the acid spill.

 _Maybe if I throw up, too, I'll feel better._

We didn't have to drive far, but we approached a gargantuan building with the largest archways that I had ever seen. This grandiose structure made me feel like a flea, and I ducked my neck down, as if to cower away.

"Alright, I will take you all to the library except Padmé, who is being picked up by Captain Typho and Dormé."

"Doesn't the council need my testimony?" Padmé asked.

"Not as of right now, but you will be called should that change," Obi-Wan said kindly.

Padmé almost seemed offended by this, but didn't say another word about it; instead, she squeezed Anakin's hand and walked over to where her chief of security and handmaiden were waiting for her.

Dormé embraced Padmé and began weeping, obviously overjoyed at the return of her lady safely.

I couldn't help but stare as the rest of us walked by the scene.

 _If we returned home today, would anyone embrace us like that?_

I remembered briefly the time Aaron had run away as a child. He was a kindergartener and did not want to go back to school. And my mom chased him down our street (we didn't live in a neighborhood at that time) in her bathrobe. He had been carrying a hard case that used to have play tools. Inside was an odd assortment of toys, clothes, and cheese puffs.

If he had made a successful escape, I know we would have welcomed him back the way we had seen.

 _Dormé welcomed her almost like the Father welcomed home the prodigal son._

But Padmé wasn't really lost. But she had been in danger for many days, which made sense as to why Dormé was worried, even though she had been in Anakin's capable hands for all of that time.

Captain Typho nodded at our group as we passed.

The high windows inside the temple let in so much light, I hardly saw shadow, except behind large pillars. They reminded me of the pillars one would see in films about Ancient Egypt, especially in their girth. On top of the inordinately large archway entry, they opened up into a room with a vaulted ceiling. One could not possibly look at everything there was to see while strolling through as we were.

My eyes must have been as large as saucers, because Obi-Wan looked back at me and laughed again.

 _What have we gotten ourselves into?_

After several minutes, Obi-Wan pointed to an open door, where there were books and flat things all up on rows and rows of shelves.

"This is the library. Bossk, Boba, Aaron, and Jo are to wait here until called. Barriss, Anakin, we must go. Just stay here until one of us returns to fetch you."

We all mumbled forms of acknowledging that we understood his instructions.

XxXxXxXx

Libraries were my element. Ours back home had a little store inside of it that sold books that had been donated by the community and books, tapes, CDs, and other various items that the library was getting rid of. I could've lived in that place, and before I had a regular job, much of my money was spent in that little store...and at Barnes & Noble...and Borders (before it went out of business)... Okay, I love books.

Since I was under the impression that we would be in this library awhile, I hastily pulled a book off the shelf- not caring what it was- and opened it.

It was the same squiggly letters that I couldn't read before.

 _That's right…_

I shut the book firmly and wanted to cry.

"I can help you," Boba offered.

I looked at him, thinking he would be stifling a laugh or be mocking me, but he was being kind.

I opened the book back up, and he pointed to the words as he went, and then went and explained which symbols meant what.

I felt like a kindergartener again, not knowing how to read.

This went on for several minutes, and I nodded accordingly and asked questions.

"I know you read a different language. Would you teach that to me?" he asked.

"If you are honestly interested, I'd be happy to do my best to teach you. English is an incredibly difficult language to learn, though, so you will have to remember to not be too hard on yourself if you make mistakes the first time. There are many rules, and to those many rules, there are many exceptions."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, there are words that have the same spelling but in different context mean two different words. Like 'wound' and 'wound.' Wound, like the injury, is spelled w-o-u-n-d. Now, wound like wrapped around is also spelled w-o-u-n-d."

Boba's eyes widened.

"But why?"

"Well, according to my linguistics professor, we can thank the French."

"Like Aaron was talking in French earlier?"

"Yes. English is based heavily on French, but there are also Latin, German, and other languages sprinkled in. We have even borrowed words from other languages to help fix holes in our own."

"Like what?" Bossk asked.

"Like...schadenfreude."

"Shaden what?"

"There will be no cursing in my library," an elderly woman with white hair in a tight, flawless bun with chopstick pins, and wearing a brown dress said from behind Aaron.

"Ma'am?" Aaron asked after he jumped from the surprise.

"I said there will be no cursing in my library."

"We didn't...oh, you mean schadenfreude?"

"Precisely."

"It is a word in our language, well German, that means pleasure derived by someone from another person's misfortune."

"I see. What are you apprentices doing out of uniform?"

"Ma'am?" I asked.

"Apprentices as young as yourselves should be in uniform."

"Well, I'm not an apprentice. None of us are," Aaron said.

"Don't be ridiculous. If you weren't, what would you be doing here?" she sniffed, offended that we would even try to lie to her (which we obviously weren't).

"Obi-Wan told us to wait here until we were called. You see, we were witnesses to the battle on Geonosis, and-," she cut me off before she pointed to the door.

"It is one thing to be out of uniform, but it is entirely another to lie to me about who you are and where you have been. Now, get out of my library before I call Temple guards to pull you out of here and put you in the-."

"Wait! They are telling the truth!" Barriss called while running down the hall and skidding to a halt in front of the door.

She walked in as if she hadn't been running, the skirt of her uniform swaying gently side to side as she walked.

"They are telling the truth, Madam. They were witnesses to the battle and were even Dooku's guests for a short time. They may be able to provide some insight into his plans."

I offered the woman my hand.

"I'm Joanne Shepherd. That is my brother Aaron, Boba Fett, and Bossk."

Her eyes widened at the mention of Bossk's name, and Bossk looked uncomfortable to have his name spoken aloud.

"I'm Jocosta Nu," she said while shaking my hand back, but eyeing Bossk all the while.

"I'm sorry, did I say something wrong?"

"No, not at all."

"I have a reputation, Jo. And it isn't a good one. There is probably a price for me as we speak, and I'm sure more than one jedi in this joint has a bone to pick with me and would love this shot," Bossk answered, obviously uncomfortable.

"You have been granted a pass," Barriss said, handing Bossk a piece of thick, official looking paper.

Bossk took it and looked it over.

"Temporary immunity?" he looked up.

"We cannot just forget your crimes, but right now we need you to help us. I am under the impression that depending on how well your help serves, it will serve you well. Either way, cooperation will work in your favor," Barriss replied.

Bossk nodded, pocketing the pass.

Barriss looked us over. I know I looked like a nervous wreck, Aaron probably looked none too comfortable, and Boba was looking between Barris and Jocasta Nu as if he were wondering which one he should be hiding from.

Bossk still looked a little nervous.

"They still aren't ready for you, because Anakin decided to make a confession in private to the council."

All of our eyes widened and were trained on Barriss.

"No, he said something about what happened on his quest to find his mother."

"Oh. I see," Aaron said.

"Anyway, they have asked me to show you a little more around the Temple while we wait. They will raise me on the comlink when they are ready for you. So, if you will please form a single-file line and follow me, please."

 _We aren't in first grade, lady…_

XxXxXxXx

"This is our medical center. While not typically open to the public for general use, they do take extreme cases on where the patients are attended to very well trained and experienced healers. Some of them are jedi."

We walked through the hall, where there were about 10 to 15 individual rooms that looked a lot like quarantine rooms in hospitals back home.

 _Like the rooms that the ebola patients that came back to the US were put in._

"It's a generally accepted thought that younglings and padawans desire to work in the field, not everyone makes the cut. The main program that the Jedi have is the Agricultural Corps, or AgriCorps, which comprises of medical, agriculture, geology, history, etc. These programs serve the community just as well as the warriors that go out into the galaxy. Younglings that are not selected for apprenticeship or padawans that fail the trials multiple times usually wind up in the Corps, at least for a time."

"For a time?" Boba asked.

"The average age for a Corps member is 16, and none are currently over the age of 40," Barriss explained.

 _I'd probably end up there._

"Next is the cafeteria. We are more than welcome to stop for lunch."

At the mention of food, Boba and Bossk nodded in excitement. Aaron and I gave bland smiles of acknowledgement. Neither one of us was in the mood to eat anything.

XxXxXxXx

We were handed plastic trays that closely resembled what one would see in our lunch rooms. We were, however, given metal eating utensils that were close enough to a fork and spoon. We walked through the line, and blobs of different foods were scooped out onto the trays.

Where Aaron and I had suffered our K-12 education had decent food. Not everything was fantastic, but we'd never been served mystery meat or anything unidentifiable. We'd joke about bad school lunch, but that's all it was. A joke. This, on the other hand….

Once we were seated at a table, Bossk sniffed everything and Bobba poked at it. I felt like I was watching a M _*A*S*H_ episode set in the mess tent.

I looked at Aaron, who was moving the meat in its juice around a little.

Finally, I picked up the fork and put a small amount of an orange mound onto it. I sniffed it, and then ate it. It tasted like yams. I moved onto the green-brown conglomerate. It tasted terrible, almost like how a rotting raccoon carcass smells.

I moved onto the meat.

This one was fun.

It almost tasted like a Salisbury steak, but the sauce was just too bland.

Not like I could eat much anyway.

I stuck to the orange mound and the milk pitcher on the table. Aaron just stuck to the meat and some of the fruits.

He noticed my glass, smirked, and said, "Enjoying your milk?"

"Oh DON'T start THAT again!"

People at the farther surrounding tables looked our way. Our party, stared at us like we suddenly grew two heads.

 _No! Not again!_

I bowed my head in embarrassment.

About that time, a group of teenagers in robes came up to our table looking right at Barriss.

The man who spoke first was the leader of the group and was what could only be described as a literal Shaggy from _Scooby-Doo_ , "Hey Barriss! How was that special secret mission you and the others went on!"

Bariss did nothing but look down. The man grew concern for his fellow Jedi and put a hand on her shoulder, "Barriss what's wrong?"

Barriss came too and looked up as if she was looking for the right words to say, "I'm sorry… I don't know how to tell you this, But every other padawan who went on the mission… died."

Shock came among their group, "What? B-but How?!"

"There were two hundred Jedi on that mission!"

"What could it have been?"

"Shaggy" then noticed the rest of us, "Who are they?"

"They're guests for the moment. The plan is to have them appear to the council in an hour or so."

"What? Why?! What happened that would require them to..."

It was then that the Living Shaggy looked at my brother who was looking down trying to ignore the conversation. The man's face contorted to anger and he rushed over to my brother, grabbed him by his shoulder armor, and then pulled him out of his seat.

"Are you all the reason they died?!"

Aaron gaped, but said and did nothing.

I had to act.

"Put him down, or It's PLAZMA CITY!"

Bossk rolled with it, "What she said!"

Boba yelled at the man, "Yeah, leave him alone!"

Barriss came to our rescue, "Please, Gi, don't do this. Aaron and his sister saved me and a lot of us this mission. Especially Aaron."

I had noticed Barriss looked at my brother longer than she probably intended. But I chose to ignore it for now.

The man then put my brother down, still looking frustrated along with the other "teens" and huffed, "If you say so Barriss, but an outsider like himself should stay out of Jedi business. They will only bring nothing but trouble."

With that, their group walked off. When the man had said "They," he looked right at my brother and me. I didn't like it. Not one bit.

My brother, who still appeared to be in thought, sighed at what transpired.

Barriss was livid and started to get up to go after Gi, but Aaron stopped her.

"It's alright Barriss. Let it go."

She was appalled, "But he had no right to treat you that way!"

It was ironic coming from her, but I agreed, "Yeah! Why did you let him push you around like that?"

Boba joined in, "Yeah, I thought you would have punched him."

Bossk laughed, "I expected the same thing. Afraid you would get us in trouble? Don't worry. Barris would have been on our defense."

"Yes. I would have."

I don't think Bossk expected her to actually say anything to that because he gave her a wary look.

"He's right, though."

Everyone just stared at him, including me.

I replied moments later with, "What?"

"Isn't he right, though? During the battle, I just stood by, watching. I didn't act until a lot later into the fight. I knew that we were on the wrong side when the battle commenced. It was a gut feeling. But I chose to ignore it, because it was convenient for me. I only acted when I had figured out that Dooku sent Jango out there to die. It wasn't for anybody else there. I had only saved you because we needed a way out…"

 _Is this my brother?! How could he think that?!_

"No! You're wrong, Aaron! You didn't do it just for Jango. You did it for us as well!"

Barriss joined in, "She's right! I don't believe what you just said for one second. How could you say that you went out of your way to save me and the others for nothing? Don't say that you did it for yourself, because it's not true!"

I looked at my brother, wanting to see...something.

He just stood still.

"Aaron, we were in the wrong place at the right time. We didn't know for sure about Dooku until it was obvious he was trying to get Jango killed. And if he _had_ died, heaven knows what could have happened! Heck, maybe Boba would have even taken up the gauntlet and or become his father. We just don't know," I said as soothingly as I could.

Again, no reaction.

Bossk joined in too, with, "Look, Shepherd, I know you're upset, but you can't save everyone. I may not be the smartest creature in the galaxy, but I will tell you one thing: with what you did, with what you had, and with what you are... I don't think any one of us could have pulled what you did. With a slug thrower no less! Shepherd, you need to quit beating yourself up, clean your wounds, and get back up on that speeder bike."

Nothing happened for a moment as most of us stared at Bossk for his profound speech.

Then, Aaron chuckled..

"What's so funny? I'm serious!"

"No! It's not that, but thank you, Bossk. You gave me what I needed to hear."

My brother cleared his throat before continuing, "I was just laughing at the last thing you said. We say 'back up on the horse.'"

Everyone sighed,

 _That's what's got him laughing?! Well at least he's not upset anymore, but what Aaron brought up bugs me..._

"That's weird that our cultures have similar sayings."

Barriss butted in, "Not really, Boba. When first contact scenarios happen, it is found that most worlds have some sayings very similar to what any culture would say."

"Really?" Boba asked.

"Similar on Earth too. Different cultures have similar phrases and the like."

"Boba, there are many things that their first contact defies compared to the other first contact encounters in our galaxy's history. The Shepherd's world comprises of many cultures and many languages that are foreign to us, and one of their languages just so happens to take on Basic at the vocal level, but it is written differently, and they found us despite having no real form of interstellar travel. Dare I say it, their world may be one of the biggest mysteries of the millennium."

 _I never thought I would hear this amount of praise about our world from Barriss, as just days ago, she made fun of it. What Aaron said to her on Naboo must have really changed her._

"It may, indeed be."

All of us nearly jumped from our seats as the green goblin from two days ago was in a chair at our table with a tray full of food, and no one noticed his presence.

Bossk broke the silence, "H-how long have you been there?"

"Been here, the whole time, I have. Good food best fresh, it is."

Aaron grew worried, "Look, Master Yoda, please don't…"

"Worry not young one. The padawan who got mad at you won't be punished. Only reacting to the loss of so many of his brethren, he is. As were the rest of them. That was what you were going to ask, yes?"

Most of us looked shocked.

"How did-?"

The old master raised his hand, "800 years I have been alive and have seen many a look as similar to your brother's face. As well as I felt it through the force. Open, more your minds are, as is Barriss's mind."

Bariss grew nervous from the look she gave, "Me?"

Yoda nodded and smiled.

"Aaron _did_ talk to you alone for long enough to change your mind about something," I said.

"Just a history lesson," she replied nervously.

I glanced at Aaron and shot him a look of bewilderment.

"She is telling the truth. We just talked about Earth and some of the history and about the morals of Earth," Aaron said.

Yoda chuckled and sauntered off with his tray, laden with lunch saying "Good good."

"Surely, I'm not the only one weirded out by his behavior?" I asked.

The others just shrugged.

XxXxXxXx

After we all finished eating, Barriss escorted us back to the library, where a green jedi with large black eyes and long tentacles all over his head. He was most assuredly some sort of aquatic species.

"I am Kit Fisto. I will be taking over as your guide."

"You mean warden?" Bossk asked.

"You aren't prisoners. We just don't want you getting lost or taking things."

"So, chaperone," I said.

Fisto nodded.

"If that is how you wish to look at it."

I shook my head and scratched my scalp, flakes of dandruff floating down and landing on my shoulders and bust.

 _He_ knows _this is just a step shy of prisoner. Is he toying with us?_

Aaron led us as we followed Fisto to a garden. There were flowers of all colors, shapes, and sizes...I caught myself looking for roses, my favorite flower, before I remembered that I wouldn't see any.

There were children in little uniforms watering, pruning, and debugging the various plants.

"This is one of the gardens on property here. While this one is a reminder of the natural beauty in the universe, the other gardens are for the kitchen. Tubers, roots, fruits, vegetables. And herbs are all grown by hand and tended by the younglings."

I watched them for a few more minutes, and an older girl with red skin and blue and white head-tails came up to us.

"Master Fisto, who are they?" she asked, eyeing Bossk suspiciously.

Bossk's eyes flicked side to side, antsy.

Aaron opened his mouth to answer, but Fisto raised his hand to silence him.

"Guests of the Council," he answered.

Ahsoka started to take a lunge toward Bossk.

Barriss stepped forward and pulled her back to a row of plants.

" Listen, youngling-"

She sharply cut her off, "Ahsoka Tano."

"Tano, we need you to keep quiet about this, it's a matter of great importance for the Jedi order that this doesn't get out, alright?"

Fisto agreed, "She's right, Ahsoka. It would help us out greatly if you tell no one you saw us."

"But he is wanted. I've seen his picture a million times on the Wanted Wall. It's Bossk."

"Ahsoka, he has temporary immunity."

"But that isn't right!"

"He was a witness to the mess on Geonosis, a valuable one at that. We need his testimony; however, his fate post testimony has yet to be determined. I suggest, young one, that you accept whatever they determine is the best course of action," Fisto warned her.

The youngling bowed contritely and went back to the plants.

"I have heard from Master Yoda that she is wise beyond her years, but that she can be stubborn and impetuous. So is Anakin, though."

"Next, I have been instructed to show you an apiary. It is on the next porch. There is so little natural foliage left on Coruscant, which is why we have the apiaries. They help us with our gardens and produce one of the few luxuries the Jedi get in this galaxy: honey. The bees produce enough honey to supply the temple, the Senate, and some of the street vendors. We don't sell it, but we share what we have."

"Wait, you have bees?" I asked.

"Yes. You have bees?" he asked.

"Yes, we do! My brother and I sometimes even bought local honey."

"These bees came from a moon of Endor. We once had an apprentice quit and he returned after many years away with this gift of bees."

"That's a nice gesture," Bossk said as we walked onto the balcony.

There were 20 or 30 bee boxes and hives. While all of the boxes were man made, some of the hives were as well.

The balcony was alive with the hum of the bees and it was kind of cool to watch them drift around and socialize.

I was usually terrified of bees and wasps, but I wasn't in that moment. It was probably because I realized there were much more dangerous things out there, like pew-pew guns, killer robots, and laser-swords.

After that, we were taken to a rounded room off of a lower porch. We went down a ramp and entered from a side door.

An assortment of children of all different species were gathered holding small laser-swords and wearing helmets. They all wore small versions of the uniforms that we had all become familiar with.

Their helmets had shields, hiding their view, and in front of them, grey balls about the size of a cantaloupe but studded with sensors hovered around in front. The kids were doing well deflecting bolts being shot at them with incredible accuracy.

I was impressed.

When we entered, all action ceased. The instructor turned to face us and the children greeted Master Fisto warmly, but looked at the rest of us as if we had head lice.

"Sorry to interrupt your practice, but I thought our guests would appreciate a look at the star chart," our guide said as he pulled a small orb, hardly larger than a marble from a pouch on his belt.

"Of course, Master," the teacher replied and pressed a button on the wall.

Shades came down to cover the windows, and a pedestal rose from the floor.

Fisto placed the orb on the pedestal and the room sprang to life with holographic stars, planets, and galaxies.

I was shocked.

Aaron looked around at the various galaxies and frowned.

"That's a spiral galaxy," he said.

"Yes," the teacher of the kids answered.

"It looks an awful lot like ours."

"What do you call it?"

"We call it the Milky Way."

"Really?"

"Yeah...we do," I said sadly, reaching out to touch the rotating mass. My fingers passed through the light.

Just as Aaron opened his mouth to say more, a device on Fisto's hip buzzed.

"They're ready."

END CHAPTER 22


	23. Interlude

Wrong Place, Right Time

 _A Mistique Interlude_

Unknown:

 _It has begun._

 _I can feel it._

 _Terror, hatred, suffering...at long last, the plan of the Sith is in motion._

 _If only you were strong enough to witness this master. I was the one for this task of being Emperor. All this was meant for me, my upbringing, my power, all of this would have been wasted if you were to be above me._

The Vault hanger door opened up for a long arrow shaped ship with a small domed cockpit.

 _My apprentice is all but the same, foolishly believing that he is a true Sith lord. Table scraps are all he deserves, crumbs of my wealth of knowledge and power. He is unworthy to continue the Rule of Two. He is only a pawn in my-._

His face contorted to anger, and he felt pain within the ship. From his apprentice.

 _I rest my case…_

He walked to the other side of the ship to wait for his apprentice to emerge.

He waited…

And waited…

It was then he realised something was wrong.

He used the force to open the hatch and rushed in as the hatch lowered. He peered towards the pilot droid, who was providing medical support for the unconscious apprentice in the ship's sleeping quarters.

 _What is this?! Although he is weaker than me, surely he would not have lost to the Jedi in a duel._

However, there he was, bleeding profusely.

"Why hasn't he been given proper Bacta treatment? Surely you are programmed for such menial tasks?!"

If the droid was offended, he didn't show it.

"It is more complicated than a simple surface wound. The wound has a metal fragment deep within the shoulder blade. Bone fractures around the impact area. He needs surgery that I am unable to provide. Shall I fetch assistance?" the droid asked in a droll monotone.

"Do It!"

The droid walked off to get assistance, leaving the master alone with the student.

He shook the wounded one on his unpatched side, rousing him.

"M-master?"

"Yes Tyranus. I am here, tell me what happened?…"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Few days later:

 _Another day dealing with those pathetic worms…_

The master was seated looking over the skyline of Coruscant, waiting for the groveling insects to discuss tax increases for the war effort. He could read them like an open holo book. In truth, they would use it as a means to increase their pay.

 _Just how my master foresaw it. This war must be fuelled by greed if we are to take control from the Jedi. Everyone will take a piece of the wealth I offer and they will be forced to obey my every command._

 _Just like how we put Nute Gunray in control of the Trade Federation years ago, they will fall in line or they will be "replaced."_

There were no unknown variables in this thousand year plan...

 _So why did one happen that DAY!_

His apprentice had now recovered with some surface scarring and relayed what happened.

The Mandolorian brought some "friends" with him. Bossk and two human siblings. One of them was called Guns and the other sibling was Roses. Pretending to be a mercenary duo and infiltrating our ranks is not an easy thing to do.

It was obvious that they were aliases to protect their identities. Dooku even took a sample of their DNA from the hair they had left in their rooms. Simply put, they did not exist -at least not in any records that they had access to.

From the small time Dooku met them, their connection to and in the Force increased. They were human yes, but as Dooku put it, "A different substance from the rest of the galaxy."

The apprentice went on as to compare it to soups and broths of all things.

His description was well put. Both are similar, but one is thicker than the other. The force flows the same as us, but their potential is extraordinary.

Dooku went on to say they didn't match Anakin in power, but they made up for it in potential. Enough potential to throw a wrench in well-laid plans if not taken care of.

The master chortled at the thought of such blank canvases.

 _It is well known that the basis of all paintings is light and dark, it's how anyone can be read. A canvas always starts out white. But when colors are introduced, things become darker. That is what the Sith are, fear, anger, hate, suffering, like colors on a pallet. The foolish Jedi reject these feelings and therefore are white, being unoriginal and predictable. Closing themselves off from their true nature. That is why the Sith shall win this time._

Tyranus went on to explain his attempt to sway them to our side, offering the best the galaxy could offer. They however refused, even with how naïve they appeared.

 _Many people hold onto moral codes because they love feeling superior to anyone else, self gratification if you will. My family was of the sorts like this. They never understood my pain. That is why they had to go. Even you, Father, who failed to see the bigger picture. So I took it all for myself! I killed the Puppet Master! I do not regret killing everyone!_

He chuckled to himself at the memory of the lights fading in his father's eyes as they begged for his life.

 _They're all the same. They all have their price. If not today, we can sway them tomorrow. All paintings can start from scratch. Once they see what we offer, they can't possibly refuse…_

But there was something else to add to the mystery. In his hand, he held the metal fragment that was removed during Dooku's surgery. What was analysed about the shrap metal was most intriguing.

XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX

 _Four hours earlier:_

The droid was absolutely sure as it handed the fragment back and declared, "This slug was made massed produced, however crudely."

"Explain."

"It has the obvious hints of being carved by machine, however very primitive. I did a computer analysis of the slug, bringing it back to its original form. It is made from copper and traces of zinc, that much is certain; however, the projectile had small faults in the carving process. Faults with such malleable metals have been solved for millenniums."

"Meaning?"

"This could have come from the Outer Rim. Perhaps even the unknown regions."

"Interesting…"

The droid was not done.

"That's not all, traces of brass and chemical compounds were found on it. It was made up of 68.2% insoluble nitrocellulose, 29.8% soluble nitrocellulose gelatinized with ether and 2% paraffin. Unlike compounds used for driving a force forward like an explosion, this one is used as a propellent. Much like Tibanna gas when introduced to electricity. This is the first time such a combination has been used for such a slug thrower."

"Did you say 'slug thrower?' Meaning this was not from a bomb?"

"That is correct. As I said, the chemical is meant as a propellent, not an explosive. Considering the shape and discharge around the slug, I am to assume as much."

Only Trandosians would use such weaponry, and he killed many in his younger years training; however, something was still not sitting right.

"Is their more?"

" Yes. Trandosians use spread pellet throwers using an explosive mixture. According to my files, the closest thing for this slug would be flint locks. I do not believe this was fired from such a weapon, indicated by the impressions on the slug. And as I said, it had traces of a propellent, not an explosive. The slug was pressed together with a brass casing that held the propellent."

"If you cannot tell me what world this comes from, can you tell me why they haven't been discovered until now?"

"I cannot, but what I can tell you this is the most sophisticated slug thrower system ever discovered. The potential for such weaponry would be astronomical for any civilizations without blasters. It could allow continued fire."

The master made no reply, but played with the reassemble slug in his hand.

 _Primitively produced, yet intelligent enough to evolve slug throwers past single shots?_

The droid noticed my stare and queried, "Shall I dispose of the slug for you?"

"No. I should like to keep it. Leave me."

The droid bowed at the command and went to do his other assigned tasks.

XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX

 _Present:_

He stood and silently observed the ships scuttering by during the evening rush hour. The man held the slug, moving it within his hand from side to side.

 _I don't take kindly to threats towards my plans. When I find the world of 'Guns' and 'Roses', I'll make sure to obliterate it if they refuse to join me. Nobody will be able to believe someone lived there when I am through with it._

Not even a second after his thoughts, he felt a tremor in the force. It was barely detectable at first, but it spread, searching for something, absorbing.

One thing was certain: _**They're here…**_

End Chapter

A/N: Chapters will be delayed due FledglingHawk2012's health crisis.

Story will resume in January. Happy Holidays.


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